It is a choice

[sailaway58]

By Michael Kahn
Wed Sep 12, 10:20 AM ET



YORK (Reuters) - Resistance is futile. The more we try to fight off a craving for chocolate, the more our desire for it grows, a British researcher said Tuesday.



But chocoholics can take heart that such sweets are not addictive despite the fact many people consider themselves as having no control over their urges to eat the sweets, said Peter Rogers, a psychologist at the University of Bristol.

"Food behavior can look like addictive behavior in extreme situations but chocolate does not fit these criteria," Rogers told a meeting sponsored by the British Association for the Advancement of Science.

Many people point to certain compounds found in chocolate

-- such as phenylethylamine -- that produce a buzz when they reach the brain as evidence chocolate is addictive, Rogers said.

But many of these compounds also exist in higher concentrations in other foods with less appeal, such as avocados or cheese, and do not cause addiction despite what many chocoholics believe, he said.

Instead, a social attitude that chocolate is "naughty but nice" may actually drive people to see chocolate as a forbidden pleasure and desire it even more, Rogers said.

"In other words, chocolate is a highly desirable food, but which according to social norms should be eaten with restraint," he said. "However, attempting to resist the desire to eat chocolate only causes thoughts about chocolate to become more prominent, consequently heightening the desire."

Other studies have suggested that dark chocolate contains more of the beneficial compounds linked with heart health, though experts note that the high sugar and fat content of most chocolate candy might cancel out some of the benefits.

But even health benefits do not make dark chocolate as popular as milk chocolate and chocolate covered confectionary, Rogers said further research has shown.

And the fact these favored choices contain lower amounts of the so-called psychoactive compounds found in dark chocolate provides more evidence chocolate is not addictive, he said.

"It is therefore far more plausible to suggest that a liking for chocolate, and its effects on mood, are due mainly to its principal constituents, sugar and fat, and their related orosensory and nutritional effects," he said in a statement.

I love chocolate! It's my choice! :lol:

[BruceChris]

The meaning of life is sex, motorcycles, and CHOCOLATE!

[Zerbie]

I was gonna say maybe it's the sugar. . .

Me, I like dark chocolate the best, but not Hershey's. Blech!

My husband likes to stay up in the middle of the night and eat avocados with a spoon. :p :lol:

[Daniel]

A French chocolate.

My favorite?

http://www.finedarkchocolate.com/Chocolate/Valrhona/Valrhona_Le_Noir_Extra_Amer.asp

I like chocolate with a high content of cocoa. The taste is amazing, and brings to mind, earth, mountains and rainforests. And chocolate with a rich, full-bodied red wine? There is no better dessert. They compliment each other very well.

I pick up a big bar of it- made for baking- and let everyone hack away.

Heaven!

Honey! Would you mind picking up......

[Zerbie]

$30 for a pound of chocolate??? Dude. . .

[Daniel]

$30 for a pound of chocolate??? Dude. . .

I get mine for about 8 bucks or so at 1/2 a pound. That's a pretty big bar by-the-way. And it's wrapped in plastic. No frills. At Whole Foods- not that I want to advertise them.

Sometimes you get what you pay for!

[Zerbie]

I get mine for about 8 bucks or so at 1/2 a pound. That's a pretty big bar by-the-way. And it's wrapped in plastic. No frills. At Whole Foods- not that I want to advertise them.

Sometimes you get what you pay for!

Okay, at least that's better than $30. :p :rolleyes:

[Daniel]

Bigger Brains, Better Genes
Believe it or not, those are among the benefits of exercising more and eating healthier.

By Dean Ornish, M.D.
Special to Newsweek
Updated: 3:47 p.m. ET Sept 12, 2007
Sept. 12, 2007 - “Go pump some neurons! Expand your craniums!”
—Robin Williams, in “Mrs. Doubtfire”

You don’t need to read this column to know that exercise is good for you. You probably already know that regular, moderate exercise is one of the best things you can do for your health and well-being. What you may not know is that new research is showing that exercise beneficially affects your genes, helps reverse the aging process at a cellular level, gives you more energy, makes you smarter, and may even help you grow so many new brain cells (a process called neurogenesis) that your brain actually gets bigger.

Really.

So does improving your nutrition. A diet high in sugar and saturated fat diminishes neurogenesis, whereas other foods increase it, including chocolate (in moderate amounts), tea and blackberries, which contain a substance called epicatechin that improves memory.

The full article is here...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20746682/site/newsweek/

Who knew that chocolate can help your brain grow?

[paul]

"A French chocolate. "


When in France, pan au chocolat is my daily breakfast. This alone is reason to emigrate. Unless you're in NY, you are hard pressed to find a patisserie that knows how to construct pan au chocolat. Food for the gods. sigh.

And Daniel, you're proof positive that dark chocolate makes for a brainiac. It obviously works.

[tdogg]

Chocolate is NOT a choice. I can't help it if I was born loving chocolate! It's in my genes somewhere. (And yes, I prefer dark chocolate - NOT hershey's as well.)

Maybe I should clarify, LOVING chocolate is not a choice (the 'sinner'). But eating it, well I definitely choose to do that (the 'sin')!!

I love avocados - plain, in salad, with tomatoes, in tacos, guacamole, etc. My partner's mother loves them in her vanilla ice cream. I haven't tried that. And I haven't tried eating them in the middle of the night.

However, in my youth I was known to eat peanut butter out of a jar with a spoon, in the middle of the night.

[keltic63]

However, in my youth I was known to eat peanut butter out of a jar with a spoon, in the middle of the night.

does this mean I'm still young? and does it have to be in the middle of the night? ever try it with some whipped topping from the can? NO? just me? OK, never mind.

[pnggrad79]

I am a rare breed-I do NOT like chocolate. The thought of it makes me ill. Eating it is even more disgusting. I used to like it when I was a kid, then one day I was munching on a $100,000 Bar and just spit it out wondering why I was eating it in the first place....

Now, sour or salty stuff-I am ravenous about. I love Limon Lay's chips, Fritos, sunflower seeds, pretzels with LOTS of salt.

[BrentRichards]

Believe it or not, I have a very take it or leave it attitude toward chocolate ... if it's there, I take it, but I don't have to have it around. I live down the street from an M&M Mars plant, and we smell chocolate everywhere at least a few days a week. I'm also half an hour from Hershey ... the happiest place on earth (until they charge you 10 bucks for parking and another 70 to get into the park).

However, in my youth I was known to eat peanut butter out of a jar with a spoon, in the middle of the night.

Family oddity here, but I'll let you decide. Peanut butter and tomato sandwiches. Yes, I know how it sounds, but it's fantastic! No crappy grocery store tomatoes, though ... only the good stuff, right out of somebody's garden, preferably. Yum.

[Zerbie]

"A French chocolate. "


When in France, pan au chocolat is my daily breakfast. This alone is reason to emigrate. Unless you're in NY, you are hard pressed to find a patisserie that knows how to construct pan au chocolat. Food for the gods. sigh.

And Daniel, you're proof positive that dark chocolate makes for a brainiac. It obviously works.

Have you lived in France? When? Where? What were you doin'?

[BruceChris]

New Years day? :confused: Not a chance. :eek::lol:

Peace, Love, and CHOCOLATE! Bruce Chris

[Daniel]

"A French chocolate. "


When in France, pan au chocolat is my daily breakfast. This alone is reason to emigrate. Unless you're in NY, you are hard pressed to find a patisserie that knows how to construct pan au chocolat. Food for the gods. sigh.

And Daniel, you're proof positive that dark chocolate makes for a brainiac. It obviously works.

Paul- you brought back a memory of my three years in Spain as a kid. A friend's mother would send us outside for 'lunch', which consisted of crusty bread stuffed with a bar of chocolate. Wonderful.

[pnggrad79]

Believe it or not, I have a very take it or leave it attitude toward chocolate ... if it's there, I take it, but I don't have to have it around. I live down the street from an M&M Mars plant, and we smell chocolate everywhere at least a few days a week. I'm also half an hour from Hershey ... the happiest place on earth (until they charge you 10 bucks for parking and another 70 to get into the park).



Family oddity here, but I'll let you decide. Peanut butter and tomato sandwiches. Yes, I know how it sounds, but it's fantastic! No crappy grocery store tomatoes, though ... only the good stuff, right out of somebody's garden, preferably. Yum.



If I lived near a chocolate plant, I would most certainly move. Ever since my second daughter's birth, smells really get to me. I can't stand Chinese food smells, brewery smells, or chocolate. I dunno, chocolate is just one of those things I could go the rest of my life without. :rolleyes:

[paul]

Have you lived in France? When? Where? What were you doin'?

I wish. No, only visited. I love France and the French. I just wish so many French didn't hate "Americans," it's something to get around. Caen and Paris...I love Paris, what an amazing place. My son has a French wife, so we have family in France and a wonderful excuse to visit.

[u-dog]

Family oddity here, but I'll let you decide. Peanut butter and tomato sandwiches. Yes, I know how it sounds, but it's fantastic! No crappy grocery store tomatoes, though ... only the good stuff, right out of somebody's garden, preferably. Yum.

Ok... I have a pile of garden fresh tomatos from my administrative assistants garden. I will have a peanut butter and tomato sandwich for lunch today and let you all know. :pray:

But PLEASE none of you try this at home. I am a trained professional (I ate peanut butter and dill pickle sandwiches as well as playing many games of "truth or dare" in my youth)

[sailaway58]

If I lived near a chocolate plant, I would most certainly move. Ever since my second daughter's birth, smells really get to me. I can't stand Chinese food smells, brewery smells, or chocolate. I dunno, chocolate is just one of those things I could go the rest of my life without. :rolleyes:

No Chinese? No beer? No Chocolate?
Why do you get up in the morning?

If it's love, give chocolate beer
Samuel Adams brews up chocolate-flavored beer for Valentine's Day; says it complements chicken.
February 3, 2004: 10:12 AM EST

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - This Valentine's Day, give something that has romance written all over it, such as chocolate beer.

Boston-based brewing firm Samuel Adams said Friday it's launching a limited-edition chocolate-flavored beer for the Feb. 14 holiday.

http://money.cnn.com/2004/02/03/news/companies/valentines_choc_beer/samadams_chocolatebeer.03.jpg
Sam Adam's Chocolate Bock

"Beer and chocolate are two pleasures that should be enjoyed and savored," said Samuel Adams founder Jim Koch. "We knew that we were up to the challenge to create an unexpected brew that could perfectly complement a Valentine's Day meal or be given as a special gift."

Brewing with chocolate essences is common in darker beers, such as stouts and porters.

The company described Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock as a dark beer with "a big, malty character with a complex full-body taster and velvety finish."

It added that the beer will sell for $14.99 per 750 milliliter bottle--roughly the size of a champagne bottle--and that it goes well with roasted chicken, chocolate mousse, chocolate cheesecake or fresh fruit.

Shares of Boston Beer Works (SAM: Research, Estimates), which owns Samuel Adams, closed at $17.77 Thursday.

[u-dog]

Ok... I have a pile of garden fresh tomatos from my administrative assistants garden. I will have a peanut butter and tomato sandwich for lunch today and let you all know. :pray:

But PLEASE none of you try this at home. I am a trained professional (I ate peanut butter and dill pickle sandwiches as well as playing many games of "truth or dare" in my youth)


Yeah... Ok... so not terrible but not... fantastic. Perhaps with a dill pickle slice?

[u-dog]

Yeah... Ok... so not terrible but not... fantastic. Perhaps with a dill pickle slice?

Oh Yeah !! that's the ticket! Mmmmm....

[Zerbie]

Oh Yeah !! that's the ticket! Mmmmm....

I'm snarfing with amusement.

This reminds me of the year in high school when one of our buddies started bringing in raw lasagna noodles and eating them with chocolate bars balanced atop.

The rest of us started bringing in raw lasagna noodles and chocolate, then someone added marshmallows, and we kept adding to it, variously creating horrifying lunch monstrosities. . . .

Though I took my endeavors to the oven and found that a partially baked, very al-dente lasagna noodle worked very nicely with a partially melted chocolate bar decorated with marshmallows.

[tdogg]

does this mean I'm still young? and does it have to be in the middle of the night? ever try it with some whipped topping from the can? NO? just me? OK, never mind.

Well...techincally you could enjoy this any time of the day, it just seemed more 'fun' to do it when I was supposed to be sleeping.

Whipped topping from a can?? No, not with peanut butter. I prefer my canned whipped topping straight from can to mouth! :lol::love:

[BrentRichards]

Yeah... Ok... so not terrible but not... fantastic. Perhaps with a dill pickle slice?

One of the Methodist Church's in my town always used to have peanut butter and pickle relish finger sandwhiches at every joint social event we did with them. That may actually be why I left the Methodist Church.