Chocolate ingredients include a number of raw and processed foods produced from the seed of the tropical cacao tree. The seeds of the cacao tree have an intense bitter taste, and must be fermented to develop the flavor. After fermentation, the beans are dried, cleaned, and roasted, and the shell is removed to produce cacao nibs. The nibs are then ground and liquefied, resulting in pure chocolate in fluid form: chocolate liquor. The liquor can be further processed into two components: cocoa solids and cocoa butter.

* Unsweetened chocolate is pure chocolate liquor, also known as bitter or baking chocolate. It is the pure, ground, roasted chocolate beans that impart a strong, deep chocolate flavor. Much of the chocolate consumed today is in the form of sweet chocolate, combining chocolate with sugar.

*Milk chocolate is sweet chocolate that additionally contains milk powder or condensed milk.

*"White chocolate" contains cocoa butter, sugar, and milk but no cocoa solids (and thus does not qualify to be considered true chocolate).Although first introduced by Hebert Candies in 1955, Mars, Incorporated was the first to produce white chocolate within the United States. Because it does not contain any cocoa solids, white chocolate does not contain any theobromine, meaning it can be consumed by animals.

Health Benefits

Chocolate contains alkaloids such as theobromine and phenethylamine, which have physiological effects on the body. It has been linked to serotonin levels in the brain. Scientists claim that chocolate, eaten in moderation, can lower blood pressure. Dark chocolate has recently been promoted for its health benefits, including a substantial amount of antioxidants that reduce the formation of free radicals, although current scientific evidence is against health improvements by dietary antioxidants. The presence of theobromine renders it toxic to some animals, especially dogs and cats.

Chocolate contains more than 300 chemicals, and has been the subject of a number of studies by universities and other scientific organizations. Here's a quick rundown of the results. (Note, we have no way of proving or disproving these claims so we offer them here as a stimulus for further research. If you're really interested in the subject, this may provide you with a starting point.)

* Cacao, the source of chocolate, contains antibacterial agents that fight tooth decay. Of course, this is counteracted by the high sugar content of milk chocolate.

* The smell of chocolate may increase theta brain waves, resulting in relaxation.

* Chocolate contains phenyl ethylamine, a mild mood elevator.

* The cocoa butter in chocolate contains oleic acid, a mono-unsaturated fat which may raise good cholesterol.

* Drinking a cup of hot chocolate before meals may actually diminish appetite.

* Men who eat chocolate live a year longer than those who don't.

* The flavanoids in chocolate may help keep blood vessels elastic.

* Chocolate increases antioxidant levels in the blood.

* Mexican healers use chocolate to treat bronchitis and insect bites.

* The carbohydrates in chocolate raise serotonin levels in the brain, resulting in a sense of well-being.

What Chocolate Won't Do:

There are many myths and half-truths about the effects of chocolate on the human body. Here are the latest findings on several of them.

* Studies show that chocolate is not a causative factor in acne.

* Cacao contains the stimulants caffeine and bromine, but in such small quantities that they don't cause nervous excitability.

* Chocolate is not addictive.

* Chocolate contains stearic acid, a neutral fat which doesn't raise bad cholesterol.

* Chocolate doesn't make you 'high'. You'd need to eat a huge quantity (about 25 pounds at one sitting) to feel any noticeable effect.

But On The Negative Side...

1. Chocolate may trigger headaches in migraine sufferers.

2. Milk chocolate is high in calories, saturated fat and sugar.

Circulatory benefits

A study performed at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm and appearing the Journal of Internal Medicine (September 2009), found that survivors of heart attacks who ate chocolate at least two or three times a week reduced their risk of death by a factor of up to three times compared to survivors who did not eat chocolate. The benefits were specific to chocolate and not to other sweets.

Muscle recovery

A study from James Madison University, presented at the American College of Sports Medicine annual meeting, showed that post-exercise consumption of lowfat chocolate milk provides equal or possibly superior muscle recovery compared to a high-carbohydrate recovery beverage with the same amount of calories. Athletes consuming chocolate milk had significantly lower levels of creatine kinase, an indicator of muscle damage, compared to drinkers of carbohydrate beverage. Sweating causes loss of fluid and also important minerals, including calcium, potassium and magnesium. The 2-hour window after exercise is an important, but often neglected opportunity to recover.

As a stimulant

Chocolate contains a variety of substances, some of which have an effect on body chemistry. These include:

*Sugar

*Theobromine, the primary alkaloid in cocoa and chocolate and partly responsible for chocolate's mood-elevating effect

*Tryptophan, an essential amino acid and precursor to serotonin

*Phenethylamine, an endogenous alkaloid sometimes described as a 'love chemical; it is quickly metabolized by monoamine oxidase-B and does not reach the brain in significant amounts

*Caffeine, present in smaller amounts

Like other palatable sweet foods, consumption of chocolate triggers the release of endorphins, the body's endogenous opiates. Enhanced endorphin-release reduces the chocolate-eater's sensitivity to pain. Endorphins probably contribute to the warm inner glow induced in susceptible chocoholics. This sensation explains why chocolate gifts are a great way to bring joy to a loved one.

Roughly two-thirds of the entire world's cocoa is produced in Western Africa, with 43% sourced from Côte d'Ivoire (the Ivory Coast), where child labor is a common practice to obtain the product. According to the World Cocoa Foundation, some 50 million people around the world depend on cocoa as a source of livelihood. In the UK, most chocolatiers purchase their chocolate from them, to melt, mold and package to their own design. Production costs can be decreased by reducing cocoa solid content or by substituting cocoa butter with a non-cocoa fat. Cocoa growers object to allowing the resulting food to be called "chocolate", due to the risk of lower demand for their crops.

There are two main jobs associated with creating chocolate candy, chocolate makers and chocolatiers. Chocolate makers use harvested cacao beans and other ingredients to produce couverture chocolate. Chocolatiers use the finished couverture to make chocolate candies (bars, truffles, etc.).