Use the Internet to find answers to these questions:
Why is chocolate possibly good for you?
Studies suggest that cocoa-containing foods improve endothelial function, reduce blood pressure, and improve insulin sensitivity.[1-3] Cocoa contains a subtype of flavonoids called flavonols or catechins; flavan-3-ols, the flavonols in cocoa, are procyanidins, which can inhibit platelet function[4] and low-density lipoprotein oxidation,[5] and increase high-density lipoprotein cholesterol.[6]
These mechanisms may explain why cocoa reduced cardiovascular mortality in this trial. But why the reduction in all-cause mortality? What in cocoa might be responsible for this observed benefit? Is it the high antioxidant content in cocoa or is some other active ingredient responsible? Future research will tell.
What is the most popular chocolate bar in the U.S. /Britain?
· Consumers in Britain prefer milk chocolate to the stronger tasting plain and the market is dominated by "filled chocolate" rather than solid blocks. The most popular bars are Kit Kat, followed by Mars and Cadbury's Dairy Milk
In US the most popular chocolate is Kit Kat – The Kit Kat bar covers two cravings: chocolate and crunch.
When was chocolate first sold in solid form?
Chocolate has been used as a drink for nearly all of its history.
In Europe was chocolate first popular as a drink or a food?
When Cortés returned to Spain in 1526, he may have brought several precious cacao beans as the earliest introduction of chocolate in the Old World. The first commercial shipment occurred in1585 when a load of beans was sent from Veracruz to Seville. For almost 100 years, preparation of the drink remained a Spanish secret, until it was finally introduced into Italy in 1606, and from there into France. The beverage soon became very popular, and chocolate houses spread all over Europe. In the 17th-18th centuries, chocolate was thought to be both nourishing and an aid to digestion
Is chocolate really addictive?
The researchers found that only milk chocolate fully satisfied the chocolate cravings of the subjects. In addition, both men and women preferred white chocolate to the cocoa capsules. This suggests that chocolate craving can be attributed to its aroma, texture, sweetness and psychological associations with chocolate (6).