Good News: It's OK to Eat Chocolate!
By Sandra Gordon | 2/10/2006

   


There's a reason that chocolate — that smooth, sweet indulgence — inspires gotta-have-it cravings, perhaps more than any other food: It's heaven for your head.

"Chocolate may help release certain levels of serotonin, dopamine and endorphins — mood-boosting chemicals in your brain," says Fran Grossman, a registered dietitian at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York.

But potentially low levels of these brain chemicals aren't the only reason chocolate registers on your radar screen. "You might crave sweets and chocolate when you haven't eaten in a long time and your blood sugar is dropping," says Grossman. Or, "it could be that you simply have a hankering and there's nothing more to it," says Grossman. The jury is still out on a specific cause for chocolate cravings, but research indicates it may be a combination of emotions, senses, chemicals, culture and hormones.

Whatever the reason for your desire, you don't have to ignore your chocolate cravings when you're trying to lose weight. In fact, you shouldn't. "If you try to deny yourself, you can end up eating more by trying to eat around your craving," says Leslie Bonci, RD, spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association and director of sports nutrition for the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

A better idea: Try these chocolate management tactics, which can allow you to enjoy chocolate without blowing too many your plan.

* Think bite-size. It usually just takes a little bit of chocolate to curb a craving. That's why Bonci advocates going to a candy store when a craving hits and buying a single solid piece of chocolate. "You really can glean a lot of flavor out of that one piece," Bonci says.
* Enjoy it, instead of guiltily gobbling it. "Sit down and let it melt in your mouth," Bonci advises.
* Get a liquid fix. Diet hot chocolate, at just 50 or so calories, is a great way to appease a yearning for chocolate, says Grossman, who frequently recommends that to her weight-loss clients. Other quick chocolate fixes: Low-fat or nonfat chocolate pudding or Weight Watchers chocolate pops, Grossman says.


Is Chocolate a Health Food?
Recent research indicates that chocolate contains stearic acid, a type of fat that may lower LDLs, "the bad" cholesterol. On the other hand, it tends to also contain saturated fat and sugar, which aren't heart healthy. Still, chocolate also contains antioxidants — the same ones in tea, red wine and many fruits and vegetables — that may help reduce your risk of heart disease and cancer, says Bonci. Overall, "chocolate is a mixed bag," says Grossman.
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