Eating chocolate ‘improves your brain function’: Study!

If you love chocolates then this is perhaps the news that may bring all cheers to you.

A study published in the journal Appetite states that chocolate consumption was found to be associated with cognitive performance “irrespective of other dietary habits.”

As per the data collected from an earlier study, researchers found that the residents of Syracuse, and New York were measured for dietary intake and risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Participants had also been given a series of tests designed to measure cognitive function.

“More frequent chocolate consumption was significantly associated with better performance on Visual-Spatial Memory and Organization, Working Memory, Scanning and Tracking, Abstract Reasoning, and the Mini-Mental State Examination,” researchers said.

“With the exception of Working Memory, these relations were not attenuated with statistical control for cardiovascular, lifestyle and dietary factors.”

Further, researchers suggested that regular chocolate intake could help “protect against normal age-related cognitive decline.” They also note that chocolate has historically (if not scientifically) been used to “reduce fever, treat childhood diarrhoea, promote strength before sexual conquests, decrease ‘female complaints’, increase breast-milk production, encourage sleep and to clean teeth.”

Several contemporary studies have found that chocolate is good for the heart and circulation, reduces risk of stroke, reduces cholesterol, and protects the skin against sun damage

One study also found that chocolates could even help you lose weight. According to neuroscientist Will Clower, a small square of good chocolate melted on the tongue 20 minutes before a meal triggers the hormones in the brain that say “I’m full”, cutting the amount of food you subsequently consume. Finishing a meal with the same small trigger could reduce subsequent snacking.

So the next time someone stops you from eating those bars of chocolates kept stored in the refrigerator, you know how to deal with them.