Is it possible to actually be addicted to chocolate? According to the BBC article (click on the title above (click on DRUGS: Your Brain... to read the article) chocolate actually affects our neurotransmitters and can change our mood. Learn about terms like "Chocolate Amphetamine" in this really interesting article.
WTF's a neurotransmitter you ask? Ever hear of Prozac? Prozac is an SSRI (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor) which in simplest terms means it mimics the shape of the neurotransmitter Serotonin and fools the brain into thinking that there is more Serotonin in the brain. Serotonin, Norepinephrine, Dopamine etc are all neurotransmitters. These natural chemicals help the neurons in the brain communicate. When they are out of balance, anything goes. We could have anxiety, depression, psychosis, etc...
Now that you've had a review about neurotransmitters, the article will be more meaningful. Read and comment.... If chocolate is deemed as an addictive substance, would you give up your Twix? Is it possible to drop the Paxil and grab a peanut butter cup instead? If it were that simple, would you do it? Are you doing it now?
I haven't had chocolate in years.... boy would I love a hunk about now!
Jonseing for a Snickers Bar,
Professor Val
(Visit my online/phone life coaching site: Soma Space Coaching)
Monday, October 1, 2007
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4 comments:
As one vivacious blonde once recounted "Exercise gives you endorphins, endorphins make you happy and happy people don't kill their husbands" I feel that while that statement could certainly hold up in a california courtroom I'm on the fence about replacing certain transmitters with chocolate?!? Sure everyone loves a good slab of dark chocolate every once in a while, but is it really a comparison to a daily regimen of prescription drugs? Every person's levels are different, why two people could be given the same dose of norepinephrin and one could exhibit signs of parkinson's while the other schizophrenia...should we really trust an over the counter aphrodisiac like chocolate? Who's to say the Augustus Gloop's of the world wouldn't over indulge in this "alternative" practice and pump themselves into a sugary killing spree?
In a sense I think the whole "chocolate addiction thing" is in a persons head. Like people can physically be addicted to drugs and there bodies will not function correctly when they don't have the drug...but chocolate? Can adicts REALLY get sick by not eating it? Crazyyy :)
As a chocolate lover myself, I was always convinced that chocolate is good for you. They say that dark chocolate has antioxidants in it and Hershey is making a new milk chocolate with the same antioxidants so the goodness will be available to all types of chocolate lovers.
I think that Tryptophan is the same chemical that is in turkey that makes us all mellow after a big Thanksgiving dinner. I've heard that chocolate is a mood enhancer before. The part about being a lust drug is interesting; I've never heard that before, but I certainly want to believe it. It is hard to say whether I actually do believe it or not though. As with any common product that is found to have new side affects, a part of this study has to be a placebo effect type of thing; mood and sexual stimulation can be easily swayed.
I don't know if I completely agree with chocolate being able to replace some drugs on the market, but I sure would like all the benefits of chocolate that this article explains to be true.
My name is Kaitlin...and I am a Chocaholic...Actually I couldn't even finish reading this post without getting up, going to my freezer and whipping up a chocolate milkshake...Yeah I bought a blender specificlly so I could make them at home and stop giving DQ so much of my money...Althogh I am not proud to be "addicted", I have to say I am happy it's chocolate (hey it can be good for your heart, in moderation)...I come from a family with addictive tendencies, so I am grateful mine ended up being less severe than most!!! But I do realize that I need to cut down because junk has consumed my diet...I went out to the grocery store a couple nights ago after watching Top Chef (Hung made a delicious looking chocolate cake) and at 11:30 pm made a batch of chocolate cupcakes...I thank my dad for this problem because he woke up every morning during my childhood and made himself a giant glass of chocolate milk with breakfast...and even worse my mother actually replaced real milk in my baby bottle with chocolate milk (No lie!)...It is amazing I don't have any cavities!...This article was very cool, but impossible to get through without giving into my craving!! yikes...
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