Good News for all my fellow chocolate lovers

You're dying for a piece of chocolate. You close your eyes and can almost feel it melting on your tongue, can almost taste its sweet richness. But you promised yourself you'd eat more nutritiously. So you ignore your craving as best you can, even though it seems to grow stronger by the minute.

Give it up. No, not the chocolate, the struggle. Go ahead and indulge, occasionally. Deprivation tends to lead to overeating. And besides, studies of chocolate consumption show that not only is there room in a healthy diet for moderate amounts of the sweet stuff, but it may even have some merit.

Researchers have discovered numerous benefits of chocolate in recent years. So peel the foil off a little piece of heaven and read on:

Catechins, antioxidants found in black tea, are believed to help boost the immune system and prevent heart disease. Dutch researchers say that dark chocolate contains four times more catechins than black tea.

Chocolate contains small amounts of caffeine and larger amounts of theobromine, a similar substance. Both are xanthines that, quickly absorbed by your body, mildly stimulate your central nervous system, speed up your heart a bit and increase your alertness. Yet there's not enough stimulant to cost you any sleep.

Concerns about tooth decay may be reduced because chocolate seems to contain an antibacterial agent that inhibits plaque formation.

Even the fat in chocolate isn't as bad as it could be. More than half the saturated fat is stearic acid, which doesn't raise cholesterol. Also, the fat in chocolate contains alpha-tocopherol, a form of vitamin E.

Contrary to popular belief, small amounts of chocolate don't cause migraines or acne.

It won't surprise you chocolate lovers that chocolate is the most craved of all foods. Some 40 percent of women and 15 percent of men report having chocolate cravings. Researchers reporting in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association believe that chocolate's appeal is a combination of its nutrients and chemical composition, as well as its fat and sugar. It doesn't hurt that chocolate melts just at or below body temperature, creating that delicious ooze when you place it on your tongue. So enjoy and have a SWEET day!

written by Kate Hostvedt, 2004, Source: Mayo Clinic