Keith - About.com User
Actually, a little bit of chocolate may be good for you. Dark chocolate has antioxidants that are good for your health. Unfortunately, chocolate treats and candy usually have lots of sugar and fat that may add extra calories you probably don't need. But you only need about 3.5 ounces of dark chocolate each day.
Chocolate lovers enjoy both the flavor and the feeling of chocolate melting in their mouth. This combination of taste and texture make chocolate a favorite form of "comfort food." Perhaps chocolate is not physically addicting, but it can be emotionally addicting when you enjoy this comfort food too often.
There are some interesting chemicals naturally found in chocolate. Xanthine, which is like caffeine, can make a person feel jittery. Theophylline will stimulate the central nervous system, relax the bronchi in the lungs and your blood vessels. Phenylethylamine (PEA) is similar to amphetamine. PEA reproduces the feeling someone has when he or she falls in love. So maybe chocolate may help soothe a broken heart.
Sources:
Budoff PW. "The use of prostaglandin inhibitors for the premenstrual syndrome." J Reprod Med. 1983 Jul;28(7):469-78. "NTP Toxicology and Carcinogenesis Studies of Theophylline (CAS No. 58-55-9) in F344/N Rats and B6C3F1 Mice (Feed and Gavage Studies)." Natl Toxicol Program Tech Rep Ser. 1998 Aug;473:1-326.
