These components is likely tryptophan, which is an amino acid found in chocolate that helps the brain make serotonin, a neurotransmitter that makes us feel happy and satisfied.

Other components of chocolate that may contribute to a burst of happiness are phenylethylalanine and theobromine. Phenylethylalanine is a natural acting antidepressant and produces the same feelings one may experience when falling in love, such as increased heart rate, alertness, and motivation.

Theobromine simulates a high, like that of cannabis, but at a much lower level, thereby producing a relaxing effect and relieving stress. Other studies have hypothesized that the act of eating is just a way to cope with stress; the fact that dark chocolate is palatable is what makes it a better coping mechanism than other substances.

It is accepted society-wide that chocolate is fun to eat and makes you feel better in a bad situation. This mindset may be what creates the happy emotions in our mind when we eat a few pieces of chocolate. After all, it is a justification for consuming those calories you were trying so hard to avoid.

Dark chocolate does contain certain components that cause us to feel the same emotions that we would in happy situations by releasing similar chemicals in our brain, but this, combined with the thought of chocolate as a coping mechanism and a miracle cure for a bad mood, is what puts us back in the realm of happy.

Feature Image Source: Chocolate Alchemy. Email Address. Homepage Research Why Does Chocolate Make Us Happy? February 20, Citations Effects of chocolate on cognitive function and mood: a systematic review.

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Sather Health August 10, Sather Health May 24, Sather Health February 25, Sather Health November 14, Recent Posts. Mental Health Stress. Sather Health January 11, So let us go through this article, and expand on some of the ideas and statements presented here. Mellor, as who knows if his words were recorded in a manner different than what they intended.

Below I will quote the article in bold, and my response will be in normal text. Let us begin. The supposed benefits of dark chocolate — from improving memory to preventing heart disease — are said to be down to the high cocoa content, which contains health-boosting compounds called flavonoids.

Many foods contain various flavonoids at various levels. Cacao beans have some of the highest levels of these flavonoids, even more than many high-antioxidant fresh fruits and vegetables like blueberries and pomegranates. Some of these flavanols in tea are consumed through the drink, but most of it is within the actually tea leaves.

Chocolate is different, we eat the actual cocoa beans whether you are nibbling on some cocoa nibs or eating the chocolate made from ground cocoa nibs. This is also a true statement. Many of the research papers look at concentrated amounts of the flavanols from chocolate.

This is a good point to bring up, and a honest one. There are some products out there sold as super health foods created by large chocolate firms which are said to contain these concentrated amounts of flavanols from cacao.

Many investors will not touch a health food product if it does not have published research to support its health claims. This is where the article begins to fall apart.

With this logic, we would have to void the claims that tea, coffee, blueberries, goji berries, pomegranates, and dark leafy greens can also benefit our health due to their antioxidant capacity. The truth is, cacao beans and dark chocolate do contain higher amounts of these.

So the question here is, if he wishes to dismiss all claims of health benefits of flavonoids antioxidants from chocolate, is he willing to do the same for all the other foods mentioned which are also promoted for these similar health benefits.

For some people, the answer here may be yes. Health benefits of antioxidants flavanols have been pushed hard by anyone marketing foods in the past couple decades at least.

So the question here is, is the idea of antioxidants and our health overestimated? You will find those who refute or downplay the claims of antioxidants made by some research and some actors who promote foods based on this.

And that is okay. Science has always been a collection of ideas and experiments, some of which are accepted and some of which are refuted.

So depending on where you stand in regards to the power of antioxidants in our foods, your view here may be different than others. Keep in mind this will not impact only chocolate though.

In fact, if we are looking and levels of antioxidants, high percentage dark chocolate would be one of the last foods to be knocked off this list due to their naturally high levels of antioxidants which is found in the cocoa beans which are ground up and turned into chocolate.

Many claim that raw chocolate made from unroasted cocoa beans contain more of the flavonoids, and they would be correct.

You will see a study on this specifically in my research blog. That said, even regular chocolate made from roasted cocoa beans still contains much higher levels of these flavonoids than the other foods mentioned above. The research does not support this claim per se.

Any food can be misused and over consumed. Chocolate is a high fat, high calorie food. No debate there. However, many calorie dense, high fat foods are not only healthful, but essential to our overall health.

There are many foods which benefit our health and are calorie dense and high in fat such as nuts and seeds, nut butters, some meats, fish, some cheeses, olive oil, and avocados.

If consumed in moderation, the research suggests the opposite. If chocolate is over consumed, yes, the health benefits can be cancelled out since generally a very high fat high calorie diet is not beneficial to all although this is debated by some as well.

Some researchers who looked at the health benefits of dark chocolate suggest anywhere from grams as moderate amounts of consumed most days of the week. You can find this browsing the health and nutrition category of my research blog in the Free Academy. This is similar to many nuts we consume which are also seeds.

Cocoa butter the fat from cocoa beans is made up primarily of 3 fatty acids Oleic - found in olive oil, stearic, and palmitic. Oleic acid is the fatty acid in olive oil that is said to be beneficial to our health.

As well, the high levels of antioxidants are suggested to impose their benefits, countering any negative impacts from the palmitic acid. If you are buying fine chocolate as sold here at Bean To Bar World, then yes, any chocolate here will cost you much more than your grocery store chocolate.

However, the plain dark chocolates are the same price, and sometimes less, than the milk chocolate bars. The article may be referring to a specific brand of high percentage dark chocolate, but choosing this type of chocolate in general is not more expensive than a milk chocolate of the same brand normally.

I believe high quality nutritious food can be good and also taste great. At bean to bar world, chocolates in this range are anything but bitter! One study estimated that a person would have to eat 12 large bars of dark chocolate every day for at least a month to get enough flavonoids to benefit heart health.

However, this is quite the claim, and with no mention of the author of this research or where to find it suggests perhaps it may not be as accurate as they say here.

As well, many times news articles are written about research, and conclude in the article something totally opposite of what the research actually suggests. In order to improve the taste, many brands add extra sweeteners and fat.

Many people make this claim. Many people who come to my virtual tastings often come with this conclusion already. The truth is, the natural flavour of high quality dark chocolate is anything BUT extremely bitter.

This is like saying all cheese is terrible if you only ever ate yellow processed American cheese, and never ate a bite of real parmesan, asiago, or gouda. Truth is, most people have only had one type of dark chocolate in their lives, and think this is what dark chocolate tastes like. You get my drift?

or the article author, as this is the belief of most people out there, and I understand why. However, the truth tastes much better. I truly do understand this claim, as I myself used to think this as well. I had no idea dark chocolate could be so enjoyable, not bitter, and so interesting in flavour!

It is true that some low quality chocolate makers do add extra sugar to improve the taste of their poor quality cocoa. This is no different than Starbucks adding syrup shots and artificial flavour enhancers to mask the poor flavour of their coffee.

It impacts the profit margins for the chocolate maker. This can rack up the calorie count to a level far higher than standard milk chocolate. Not true at all.