The most recent finding has an Italian researcher saying he has found an association between eating chocolate and sexual fulfillment. Women who love chocolate, he says, seem to have better love lives. And that comes on top of earlier research that chocolate -- at least dark chocolate -- may be good for your heart.
Chocolate seems to straddle the line between a food and a beneficial medicine. Even the conventional wisdom that chocolate is related to acne has been challenged. Its chemical properties are complicated. Chocolate contains more than 300 substances, including caffeine in small quantities, and theobromine, a weaker stimulant. Some contend that these two chemicals form the basis of the much-touted chocolate high, postulating that they increase activity of key neurotransmitters. The stimulant phenylethylamine, which is related chemically to amphetamines, is also in chocolate.
According to Italian researchers, women who eat chocolate regularly had the highest levels of desire, arousal and satisfaction from sex. But for men, the findings of a British study were not so good.
In the chocolate/sex study, urologists from Milan's San Raffaele hospital questioned 163 women about their consumption of chocolate and their sexual fulfilment.
"Women who have a daily intake of chocolate showed higher levels of desire than women who did not have this habit," the study found. "Chocolate can have a positive physiological impact on a woman's sexuality."
Dr Andrea Salonia, author of the study - funded by a university, not by the confectionery industry - said women who had a low libido could become more amorous after eating chocolate.
She believes chocolate could be particularly medicinal for women who shun sex because they are suffering from premenstrual tension.
"Chocolate is not like a food, it's like a drug," Dr Salonia said. "Women who suffer mood swings as a result of their menstrual cycle may also suffer a dip in their sexual function. I strongly believe eating chocolate may improve their sexual function."
The research also looked at smoking and coffee consumption, but found no links with sexual enjoyment. From The Sunday Times of London
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