The good news about chocolate:

* The carbohydrate in chocolate is used in the production of chemical messengers in the brain such as serotonin, which make us calm and relaxed.

* A bar of milk chocolate gives around 15% of you daily calcium requirement.

* Chocolate is less likely to cause tooth decay than other sweets.

* Although chocolate is one of the most craved foods, particularly by women, it is not addictive.

* Chocolate is a surprising source of copper with one ounce of dark chocolate providing around 1/5 of our requirements. Copper is required for healthy bone formation and to help in wound healing.

* An ounce of dark chocolate provides over a tenth of our daily magnesium requirements. We need magnesium for efficient calcium absorption, proper muscle function and the production of serotonin, among hundreds of other functions.

If your sweet tooth and taste buds need more convincing, check out the following goodies from American Dietetic Association spokesperson Katherine Tallmadge.

"The purer the chocolate, the more benefits you receive," says Katherine Tallmadge, author of Diet Simple. "Cocoa powder has double the nutrients as regular chocolate. Of the regular chocolates, dark has the most. But when chocolate or cocoa is diluted with milk, water, sugar or other processing methods, its nutrient content is diluted too.

"And while chocolate has benefits, just like other beneficial high fat foods such as nuts, its high calorie content means you’re best off enjoying it in moderation, if a trim figure is something you desire!"

Sink your teeth into these great chocolate-indulging tips from Diet Simple:

1. Dark chocolate! A hunk of deep, dark chocolate smells lusciously chocolatey, and the first bite is very satisfying. Since it's so rich and the flavor so strong, you can be satisfied with very little. At 110-120 calories per ounce, that's more satisfaction for less than half the calories of a full-size milk chocolate bar with peanuts!

2. Frozen yogurt! Try a half-cup frozen chocolate yogurt (100 calories) topped with a half-cup sliced fresh strawberries (approximately 20 calories).

3. Chocolate popsicles! You can find a variety of low-calorie chocolate popsicles or frozen chocolate pudding pops in your supermarket's freezer. Starbucks now offers a Frappucchino Mocha frozen pop that weighs in at only 120 calories!

4. Chocolate puddings! Look for the fat-free varieties and indulge. Many low-cal varieties are just about 120 calories per serving.

5. Hot chocolate! On chilly nights, cuddle up with a steaming cup of hot cocoa: Heat 6 ounces skim milk (68 calories), 1/2 Tbsp. cocoa (10 calories), 1/2 Tbsp. sugar (24 calories) in a pan. Add a dash of cinnamon and/or vanilla extract. Heat while stirring constantly, and you'll warm yourself up with just 102 calories!

6. Old-fashioned chocolate "ice cream" floats! For hot summer nights, make a frosty chocolate float: Place 1/2-cup nonfat chocolate frozen yogurt in a glass, and add your choice of diet soda to fill the glass. Each serving has approximately 110 calories, depending on the frozen yogurt used. Serves up a cool, refreshing drink that satisfies your chocolate craving and beats the heat.

7. Pure chocolate! Don't waste the calories on the cookie dough surrounding the chocolate chips or on the almonds in the chocolate bar! Have a few squares of pure milk chocolate instead! One miniature chocolate bar (about 7 grams) is only about 36 calories.

8. Chocolate chips! Sprinkle semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips on your yogurt for a sweet after-dinner snack. One tablespoon of semi-sweet chips is 52 calories. Milk chocolate chips have 54 calories per tablespoon.

9. Chocolate jimmies! Sprinkle chocolate jimmies on your banana, or over vanilla yogurt for a chocolatey breakfast treat. At only 20 calories per teaspoon, it's a guilt-free way to indulge your chocolate craving.

10. Chocolate syrup! Make a chocolate sundae with fresh fruit instead of ice cream. Regular chocolate syrup has about 50 calories per tablespoon. Light chocolate syrup has only 25 calories per tablespoon.

11. For Women Only: Chewy calcium supplements like Viactiv come in delicious “milk chocolate” and “mochaccino” flavors. Each piece supplies 500 milligrams of calcium and has just 50 calories!

12. The "Death by Chocolate" dessert splurge alternative! Save up all your chocolate cravings during the week, then splurge on one luscious chocolate extravaganza on the weekend.

Bottom line: Keep your daily chocolate indulgence to the tips above and save 380 calories a day compared to eating a standard 500-calorie luscious dessert. Indulge your luscious dessert habit just once a week, rather than daily, and save the same amount of calories! Many of my clients have lost 30 to 40 pounds while still indulging their chocolate cravings every day.

[此贴子已经被作者于2/11/2004 1:55:32 PM编辑过]

Chocolate pepper

[此贴子已经被作者于2/11/2004 2:11:21 PM编辑过]