Nowadays, even schoolchildren know that it is better to eat dark chocolate than milk chocolate. But nutritionists keep repeating that nutrition is a very individualized process, so that even the healthiest foods in the world can greatly harm your health under certain circumstances. Dark chocolate is just one of them.
Chocolate May Be Harmful for Your Stomach
No matter what kind of chocolate you like – milk or dark – experts advise to eat it with measure. Cocoa is a hard product for the stomach, and digestion of chocolate requires a large number of enzymes. If the stomach is weak and sluggish, chocolate may be its real enemy. People with poor digestion should rather eat small amounts of milk chocolate because milk makes it easier to digest cocoa.
Can Chocolate Help Treat Depression?
In addition, the experts have different opinions about chocolate being able to fight bad mood and depression. It is a widely known fact that dark chocolate is distinguished by a high content of the substances that contribute to the development of the “happiness hormone”, serotonin, which gives us good mood. However, experts warn that high doses of serotonin can provoke inflammatory processes in the body. First of all, it causes problems with the stomach and intestines.
The Consequences of Excess Serotonin Levels
Instead of bringing a sense of joy, an excess of serotonin produces just the opposite effect and causes growing anxiety, restlessness, overstimulation, and irritability. Eventually, dark chocolate, eaten in large quantities, can aggravate the state of depression. In case of chronic depression, it is better to forget about chocolate and exclude it from the menu. The use of a chocolate bar as a cure for the blues can be very unsafe, if one has the symptoms of a lingering depression rather than a slight sadness. In this case, it is necessary to visit a specialist.
