Chocolate — Be Still My Beating Heart!
“What you see before you, my friend, is the result of a lifetime of chocolate.”
— Katherine Hepburn
What is it about chocolate that lures us to consume it in all its deliciousness?
“Not everyone likes chocolate,” I told my friend the other day.
“WHAT??? Who doesn’t like chocolate?”
It’s a fact. However, I’ll admit right up front that I am NOT one of those people.
But for those of us who do partake of this prized bean, it’s time to delve further in and find out exactly what the pull is.
Chocolate has been around for an extremely long time. Evidence shows that chocolate was produced as early as 1900 B.C. but it goes back even earlier to 450 B.C. in Mesoamerica where fermented beverages were made.
Most of us know the Aztecs used cacao seeds as a form of currency as they believed they were a gift from the god Quetzalcoatl.
It has been the centre of a few historical events as well as transforming people and places.
In 1624 the religious leader Johan Franciscus Rauch from Vienna condemned it as he believed it incited passion. Chocolate seems to have always been associated with love, and even Casanova thought it was useful for seduction (no wonder Johan wanted it banned).
Over the years, things have changed. It is farmed, processed, manufactured and consumed in food and beverages very differently. But at the end of it all, it still holds a seduction that we can’t get away from.
Why? What is it about chocolate that holds us?
The chocolate we know today has a significant amount of sugar. But it also has two other neuroactive drugs, caffeine and theobromine. This means that it not only stimulates the opiate receptors in our brain it can release neurochemicals from the pleasure centres such as dopamine, serotonin and endorphins. However, in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology the authors did note that the effect was probably due more to the smell and the taste than the chemical effects.
On delving into all this, the part I like the best was ‘the health benefits’. These are now the excuse I need to continue eating chocolate!
Mind you, I did learn that one can over-do it. The sugars and fats added to chocolate mean it gets up there with the calories. Plus over consumption can mitigate the benefits.
The health benefits.
The cacao bean is full of phytonutrients acting as antioxidants. They are rich in iron, copper, magnesium, zinc and phosphorus. Of course, you have to be eating dark chocolate which also contains two to three times more beneficial flavanols than any milk chocolate.
Without going into details, it is good for the heart and the brain, and at my age, I’ll take anything that keeps those two ticking along. As mentioned above, it can also help the mood. Now we all need positivity in the world we are currently living in so eating a bit of chocolate should help.
The not so good side to chocolate production
Climate change is threatening chocolate production. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the main cacao-producing areas will be affected by the change in temperature by 2050. This will result in significant shrinkage in viable land.
And going hand in hand with climate change is the ethical side of the production. I recently posted an article about the devastation to the Sumatran tiger because of palm oil which is used in the making of many chocolates.
It is not only animals, but children also are being affected. 2.3 million children work in the production of chocolate. Sadly they are vulnerable to trafficking, slavery and other violent labour practices.
ALWAYS make sure you buy fair trade chocolate, or you know the company is an ethical brand.
Keeping up with the Chocolates
The cacao bean has come a long way from when it was first used. Now you can eat all kinds from the highly sweetened to the varying levels of bitterness. You find it in protein bars, drinks, deserts and everywhere in between. Flavours are added such as nuts, fruits and spices all to enhance the taste experience.
I can’t say I am a connoisseur of chocolate, but I do know when I have tasted a good one. I have my favourites which, sadly are the most expensive ones on the shelf. And with that being the case, I don’t eat nearly as much of it as I would like.
