Chocolate 

Call me naive but I use to think everybody loved chocolate. It’s only since my journey eating more RAW FOODS and having lots of foodie conversations that I am realising there are people out there who do not like chocolate at all, some even say they hate it.

So what is it about chocolate that has got so many other people hooked. Don’t get me wrong I use to be a bit of a chocoholic myself but not any more, I don’t crave it like I use to. I make my own RAW CHOCOLATE and most of the time it has only 3 ingredients, one is a sweetener, one helps to make it solid so it can melt later in my mouth and the other is Cacao (pronounced KAKOW) powder.

Please note Cacao (raw chocolate) is different from Cocoa (processed / roasted chocolate)

My commitment to not eating any animal products has contributed to my demise of eating chocolate. Most chocolate has some element of dairy in it, except raw and vegan chocolate.

So what’s in the Cacao (RAW CHOCOLATE)?

Some of the nutrients are:

Iron – keeps the blood healthy with haemoglobin.
Magnesium – neutralises toxins, fights build up of acid, builds strong bones and teeth.
Chromium – assists in balancing blood sugar and detoxifies the liver.
Theobromine – this is very similar to caffeine in structure and is linked to chocolate being labelled an aphrodisiac.
Phenethylamine (PEA) – is the chemical we create when we fall in lurve,
Zinc – plays an important role in the immune system.
Vitamin C – assists in cell protection and wound healing.
Manganese – helps in oxygenating the blood and forming haemoglobin.
Omega 6 fatty acids – good fats.
Serotonin – helps us build up our stress defence shield.
Tryptophan – is an essential amino acid which is used in the production of serotonin (makes you feel less depressed).
Antioxidants – helps fight disease and keeps us young.

Gimme chocolate NOW!

The crave, want or need you may have for chocolate could be due to various reasons, here are a few:

  • You may be deficient in one of the nutrients named above – a lot of people are deficient in magnesium.
    Because Cacao has PEA – maybe you just want some lurve.
  • The sugar could be what you are craving – try this test, if you can get hold of some Cacao just taste a bit of on its own, my bet is that you are not going to like it as much as you do if it had sweetener in it – just a thought.
  • Fluctuating hormones will impact on what your body needs at certain times and chocolate may just have what you are lacking e.g. during your period you lose iron.
  • You just like the combined taste & texture of all the ingredients because it makes you feel nice.
  • The aroma or thought of chocolate can trigger a pleasant memory you associate with it – so you may subconsciously just want to create that feeling again.

There may be many other reasons, feel free to post yours here.