Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Chocolate, Better Than You Ever Imagined

Okay, so, I was partly wrong with my statements on caffeine and chocolate. PARTLY. There is caffeine in it. But, there is significantly more theobromine than caffeine in chocolate. My professor sent me the link to an article that I quote below about chocolate and why it does what it does. Here is the whole thing. It's actually a really interesting read, if you can get past all the big science words. There's a lot more in chocolate that affects your mood than caffeine or theobromine. It has chemicals that mimic the effect of cannabinoids (marijuana) and it has the same alkaloid compounds found in alcohol (AA actually recommends that those in recovery eat chocolate when they are craving alcohol). Plus more (but I can't make much sense of it myself, so I'm not quoting it here). It's the magical combination of all the stuff found in it that makes chocolate what it is. I made the mistake of trying to dumb it down to one thing, though others make the same mistake by trying to claim it's only caffeine that makes chocolate great. The best part? "Theobromine has been shown to be nearly 30% more effective in stopping persistent coughs than the leading medicine codeine." So go buy that awesome Swiss chocolate you've always wanted next time you have a cold. Sweet!

"Chocolate also contains significant amounts of methylxanthines, most notably caffeine and theobromine (a caffeine-like substance found almost exclusively in chocolate). Both are stimulants, and caffeine can cause noticeable behavioral effects. Although the methylxanthines are bases, they have a very low pKa (0.5) and, hence, are highly fat soluble and are absorbed from the stomach and through the walls of the intestines, easily crossing both the blood-brain and placental barriers. In animals, theobromine appears to have effects congruent to those of caffeine, although theobromine causes less stimulation and takes longer to induce a peak pharmacological effect. Moreover, recent clinical studies have suggested that theobromine suppresses vagus nerve activity, which is responsible for coughing. In fact, theobromine has been shown to be nearly 30% more effective in stopping persistent coughs than the leading medicine codeine. Consequently, chocolate is now being marketed as the new, effective cough suppressant.

While the quantities of methylxanthines in chocolate are variable even within a brand, a typical 1.65-oz Hershey milk chocolate bar contains only 10 mg of caffeine (22 mg/200 g) and 92 mg of theobromine (197 mg/100 g). For comparison, a cup of coffee usually contains 80–100 mg caffeine, and no theobromine. While the relative concentrations of methylxanthines in chocolate are low, the caffeine and theobromine are nevertheless likely to play a large role in the pharmacological effects of chocolate. Although the dosage typically found in chocolate appears to exert only modest, caffeine-like symptoms, the combined effects of theobromine and caffeine in cocoa products may differ from those of either compound alone. Moreover, a recent study demonstrated that when comparing cocoa powder with just the isolated methylxanthines, the two groups exhibited similar pharmacological effects. The researchers concluded that since the cocoa powder (which contains all of the active compounds in chocolate) had similar activity to the isolated methylxanthines, the pharmacological effects of chocolate are most likely largely due to the methylxanthines."

3 comments:

  1. And now I must find some chocolate!!! Curses! ;)

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  2. Your new blog format leaves afterimages in my eyes. Waugh.
    Odd thing about chocolate and coughing...You've been there when I've eaten chocolate and it caused a huge fit of coughing. I believe I'll ignore all medical benefits of chocolate, and remain thinking of it as something I'd be better off without.

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  3. well aren't YOU a smarty pants! a almost didn't understand that. but i got most of it. i think i'm good. but interesting just the same. i might even click on that link. but i will definitely eat some chocolate! :)

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I will be watching, and just like Santa Claus, if you are naughty, I will hunt you down and feed you to my reindeer (I keep them in my shed). I reserve the right to delete any and all comment that make my feelgoods feel bad.