Chocolate

Should We Fear Chocolate?
Anna Lynn C. Sibal
Women on a diet or women who are conscious of their weight and figure always display a certain fear of chocolate. They avoid it like plague, thinking that the sugar and the calories that chocolate contains will make their diet and weight-loss plans go haywire. And yet, when things go wrong and they are feeling down, they go and raid the fridge and gobble on as much chocolate as they can. When these women come to their senses later on, they feel horribly guilty and try to burn the sugar and calories gained from the binge.
Chocolate is a feel-good food; it is always associated with feelings of comfort and love. It is sweet and melts deliciously in the mouth. It induces the production of endorphins in the body, endorphins being hormones that reduce the feelings of pain in the body and makes the body feel pleasure in its stead. Chocolates are often given to children as rewards for good behavior. A lover (or a potential lover) gives a woman a box of chocolates to show his affection.
Given that chocolates do contain sugar and calories that dieting women find highly undesirable, should we women fear chocolate? The answer to this is that they should not. Eating chocolate is not something to be feared or avoided as if one�s life depends on not seeing a piece of that brown, melt-in-the-mouth sweet. Chocolate is not known to be physiologically addictive. Whatever cravings chocolate induces in a woman is all in her mind. In fact, chocolate can be beneficial, if eaten in the correct manner.
So, how should we women eat and enjoy chocolate without feeling even an iota of fear or guilt? Simply put, chocolate should be eaten in small amounts, and the experience of eating chocolate should be savored.
Chocolate should be eaten as a treat rather than a snack. If one is feeling hungry, she should eat a proper meal or a snack that is not loaded on calories. Eating chocolate when one is hungry only leads to bingeing. Besides, research has proven that consuming chocolate when one is not hungry lessens the craving for it.
Another thing about eating chocolate is that it should be eaten slowly. Chocolate should be eaten for the pure pleasure of it, so it should be savored. Feeling guilty about eating chocolate will only make the person eat it faster and consume more. One cannot taste chocolate, or anything for that matter, if it is eaten far too quickly, and one will only end up wanting more.
A third thing to remember about eating chocolate is that less is more. One will get more pleasure out of eating a small piece of dark chocolate than from a cookie laden with chocolate chips, simply because there is more chocolate in a small bar than in a cookie. If you are going to take in calories from chocolate, there is no point to adding more to your calorie count by eating something else with the chocolate.
Lastly, chocolates should be kept in a place that is not easily accessible so one would not give in to a sudden binge if the cravings hit her. It should be stored where it is not always in one�s line of sight.
Chocolates are not to be feared. They are comfort foods and should be considered as a treat and a reward to one�s self. Chocolates are good.