I’m going to suggest that cacao is the most natural mood-enhancing thing you can consume without consuming ‘drugs’.
Spoiler: Then I’m going to explain that even though, it sounds a bit like drugs, it’s totally healthy, nowhere near as potent, and it’s unreasonable for me to even suggest such a comparison in the first place since so many things out there can change your state and the way you feel anyway.
Many of us are dealing with daily stress and anxiety right now. It’s no secret people often look for things that can counter this in a very physical way. Unfortunately, it’s not always a healthy habit (alcohol, sugar etc.) Whilst there are tons of healthy ways to manage stress and stay balanced without consuming things (ever heard of meditation, exercise, rest, music etc?) Cacao is a natural and healthy way to help you physically and emotionally cope (whilst tasting great). It’s able to reduce anxiety and boost your mood.
It is naturally potent in feel-good chemicals which all have their own ways of making you feel relaxed, focused, contented, and a little warm and fuzzy inside. It’s no coincidence many people use chocolate to feel good (but thanks to sugar and excessive calories for many it’s not quite a guilt-fee endeavour!)
We look down on the idea of drug taking. Creating dark mental movie images of junkies lying around in ecstasy. Probably a good thing, since most ‘drugs’ as people know them are destructive to our health and to society. But if you have ever come across a cacao ceremony, we also see people lying down, breathing consciously, often in a state of bliss. Yet this comes across as a wholesome and healthy practice. They are very different in a few ways, and similar in others, let's dig down into why.
The drugs nature hides in cacao.
Ultimately what some drugs and cacao both have in common is changing your brain chemistry. Among many changes, increasing levels of serotonin is a big one. Serotonin is the key neurotransmitter in your brain to enable you to find that feel-good mood. It does many other things too, relating to sleep, digestion, and healing to name a few. But from a mood-boosting point of view, serotonin enables to you feel contented – that your body has enough. You’re more focused, calm and emotionally stable.
Of course, the intensity of cacao impact versus ‘other substances’ is very modest. But at the same time hard to deny. A study in 2011, found nurses who consumed 50 grams of dark chocolate (e.g. with a high percentage of cacao!) for three days had fewer symptoms of stress, anxiety, and depression.
Let’s explore the numerous ways cacao helps promote those feel-good vibes:
Tryptophan. Cacao is rich in the amino acid tryptophan which is what the body uses to make serotonin. Consuming more tryptophan allows your body to produce serotonin in abundance. Nice. It’s also worth noting that there is actually a small amount of serotonin itself in chocolate! And we’re only just getting started.
Magnesium. Magnesium is known as the mineral that helps your body relax. In particular, among the 300+ enzyme production processes it supports, it’s known for helping muscles relax after contracting. Research also suggests it too can help the body produce more serotonin as well. It’s critical in helping the body manage it’s response to stress, and also helps the brain produce GABA, yet another chemical that promotes relaxation and reduces anxiety!
Theobromine. Is a stimulant that has far less effect on the central nervous system. Instead, it stimulates your cardiac system. It is a “bronchodilator” and causes relaxation of “vascular smooth muscle” (huh?). In other words – it helps your lungs breathe more air, and promotes more blood flow around your body by relaxing muscle tissue around your blood vessels.
Phenylethylamine. Or ‘PEA’, works in an area of the brain associated with emotions. It promotes feelings of pleasure, creativity and motivation. It has been shown to relieve depression in 60% of depressed patients! This chemical found in cacao, and dark chocolate, it makes the brain release b endorphin, the main reason it adds to the pleasure you feel.
Anandamide. Known as the ‘bliss molecule’, Anandamide is what we feel when we do things like yoga and meditation. It is what you feel when you feel “runner’s high” during exercise. When consumed in the form of chocolate, anandamide interacts with the same endocannabinoid receptors that THC in cannabis does.
Valeric Acid. Yet another known relaxant, this beauty has a molecular structure that is almost similar to that of GABA, the naturally-occurring neurotransmitter produced by the brain that helps reduce stress and anxiety. There is evidence to show Valeric acid itself can do the same, slowing down your autonomic bodily responses, and increasing relaxation.
Why you don’t need to get worried about consuming more cacao.
From what I’ve just said it sounds like cacao could be nature’s entire drugstore in one little bean. So should we be worried and treat it like other dangerous substances?
Nope.
Here’s why I’m convinced we shouldn’t be;
Cacao is food. Straight from nature. Unlike ‘hard drugs’ which have gone through extreme processing or been created in labs, cacao is undeniably food for the human body. It’s a superfood. It undergoes simple processing including fermentation and sometimes roasting, and has done for centuries. It’s packed full of minerals, is one of the highest-known sources of antioxidants (40 times more than blueberries!), and contains an abundance of healthy fats. Eat cacao, and you’ll nourish your body, not harm it.
Cacao isn’t addictive – too much. There’s no denying, with all this going on, cacao also increases dopamine in your brain. The neurotransmitter which causes to you want ‘more’. Whilst dopamine drives all addiction in humans, the levels by which cacao raises it are not significantly beyond other healthy dopamine-driving activities, like exercise, sex, eating, or pursuing important goals. Sure, like sugar, alcohol, and pizza, it can sometimes be difficult for some to stop consuming (it is believed by some that sugar and fat are more responsible for dopamine increase from chocolate). However so far despite ‘chocoholic’; stereotypes, cacao addiction is not seriously recognized by the medical establishment as a serious affliction in society. Yes, it can be hard to stop eating chocolate and sweet things in general, but it’s not cocaine, and we can exercise restraint. Anecdotally we know that dessert in general can be harder for many to say no to, versus very dark chocolate which high cacao percentage. So long as you are consuming cacao, not chocolate, you are avoiding extra sugar, dairy, and excessive calories, which can make over-eating of any kind more harmful.
Healthy intentions. Cultures that have practised cacao ceremonies for centuries know the mediative states of calm cacao can bring you can be brilliant for helping you find peace, balance, and generally better mental health.
Used like this cacao is a tool that can enhance meditation and connection with others. That means more oxytocin, the bonding hormone – and it feels good. We don’t demonize things that help us create feel-good oxytocin, and the same goes for many things that change our brain chemistry, the nuance is in the detail such as the intentions. People often set intentions when participating in cacao ceremonies and connect with their most spiritual sides, celebrating love, connection and peace – something many struggle to do in today’s ongoing mental health crisis.
It’s for this reason, I often talk about using cacao to both feed your body but also, nourish your soul.
Comments