Can Chocolate Affect Your Sex Life?

From the time the first coca beans were harvested by the Mayans, there has been the belief that chocolate has a euphoric impact on the body's senses. The conquistadores saw the Emperor Montezuma of the Aztecs consuming a large quantity of cocoa in the form of a beverage called chocolatl before entering his harem. The invading Spaniards spread the Emperor's belief that cocoa was an aphrodisiac and brought it to Europe. This belief was also shared by one of history's most famous lovers, Giacomo Casanova.

Since then, the use of chocolate as part of the mating ritual has been firmly established. . More recently it has been shown that not only does chocolate increase the sexual appetite but also produces a sense of elation similar to an orgasm.

It has only been in recent times that scientists have unravelled chocolate's psychotropic properties and the effects it has on us. Chocolate has been found to contain modest amounts of the stimulants caffeine and theo-bromine, (much less than in coffee or tea) Chocolate is also known to generate increased levels of serotonin, a chemical naturally produced by the brain, which is known to reduce anxiety. Serotonin is most commonly associated with the effects of marijuana or getting 'stoned' (you would have to eat 25lbs of dark chocolate at once to achieve the same effect).

Neither of these properties by themselves provides the connection between eating chocolates and heightened sexual pleasure. It is in fact the rush of endorphins produced by eating chocolates, particularly dark chocolates, which is most similar to the bliss associated with a healthy sexual relationship. Chocolate also contains phenyl-ethylamine which is known to stimulate the release of dopamine into the pleasure centers commonly associated with an orgasm.

In addition to this scientific evidence, a great deal of behavioral research has been done to study the sexual behavior of women who eat a lot of chocolate and those who don't. The conclusion of this is that women who consume large quantities of chocolate have more satisfying sex lives. However the reverse correlation could also be assumed where women with satisfying sex lives tend to eat more chocolate.

Despite the fact that the relationship between sex and chocolate can't be proven with 100% certainty, the scientific evidence combined with behavioral studies provides a compelling argument for cocoa's impact on our sexual drive - it is convincing enough for chocolate to have become a part of my daily diet!

I recommend that you buy chocolate with a high cocoa content which taste better and do not contain extra sugars and oils like candy bars found in most shops. My personal favorite, Neuhaus chocolates, is an example of where you can get dark chocolate with a high cocoa content and a resulting surfeit of pleasure. To paraphrase the Song of Solomon, 'Stay me with flagons and comfort me with chocolates, for I am sick with love'.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Shaka_Zulu

http://www.everything-about-chocolate.com/Chocolate%20-%20Sex.html

Tags: affect, chocolate, sex

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Permalink Reply by Sebastian on April 1, 2011 at 8:38am

Not to be picky, however the cannabanoid analogue in chocolate that is referenced as a marijuana mimetic is actualy anandamide, which binds to the same neuroreceptors as THC. Your brain also naturally makes anandamide. Theobromine and theophylline are alkaloids that are kissing cousins of caffeine, but less potent (to humans - they are, howver, the reason you don't want to feed your dog or horse chocolate, as they're very potent to them). Phemylethylamine can also be present, which can quicken the pulse and elevate your blood sugar levels.

Edited to add: it should also be pointed out that high cocoa solids on their own, mean nothing. how you process both the beans and the chocolate means everything with regards to how many of the naturally occurring beneficial components remain. it's very, very easy to destroy them in processing if you don't know how to treat your beans and your chocolate. it's quite apparent from testing many, many chocolates labelled as high cacao which tout the benefits that are percieved to come along with it, that most do not know how to appropriately process their product, and are simply jumping on the PR bandwagon.

Permalink Reply by Clay Gordon on April 1, 2011 at 10:11am

Although sources are listed, this article is a plagiarized copy - complete with the misspelling of "coca" for "cocoa" in the first paragraph.

The poster lists his address as in Croatia but points to the home page of Neuhaus. My thought is that this is blog spam posted solely for the purpose of getting the link to Neuhaus in the article. It has been edited to remove the link and closed to further comments until I can contact the poster for clarification.

:: Clay

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