Sunday, December 21, 2008
CHOCOLATE
Food has played a major role in our everyday life. It ensures that we are on the go and survive the day without empty stomach. Be it a light snack or a heavy meal, we get our energy to carry out daily chores. There are also researches on what type of food or snack would be preferred to others and one of the most common indulges would be chocolate.
This word comes from the Aztec word ‘cacahuati’ or ‘xocolatl’, which means ‘bitter water’.
Chocolates are derived from cocoa beans. These cocoa beans are obtained from the trees in warm and moist climates, and they are of abundance in West Africa- Ghana, the Ivory Coast and Nigeria. The scientific term for the cocoa tree is ‘Theobroma Cacao’ which translates ‘Food for the Gods’ in Greek. The cocoa beans are fermented, dried, roasted and grounded before being used to produce chocolate.
There are different flavours of the many variety of cocoa beans, and so explains the different kinds of chocolates. The main types are White Chocolate, Milk Chocolate and Dark Chocolate, which can be further divided into sweet, semi-sweet, bittersweet and unsweetened. The following show some brands of chocolate we consume in the different categories:
White Chocolate
· Nestle Milky Bar
· Toblerone White Chocolate
· Godiva
· Prestige White
Milk Chocolate
· Hershey’s Milk Chocolate
· Cadbury Dairy Milk
· Tim Tam Milk Chocolate
Dark Chocolate
Sweet
Semi-sweet
· Grenada Chocolate 60%
· Scharffen Berger 62%
Bittersweet
· Ecuador
· Marcolini 72%
· Droste 75%
Unsweetened
· Baker's
· Luker
· Nero
As stated above, chocolate is a product of cocoa. These trees are planted in the shades of the rainforest canopy layer. Colourful pods are grown. The beans are extracted from the pods which will be fermented and dried then sold to wealthier Euporean countries. Here, the beans are roasted and grounded until it becomes a liquid(cocoa liquor; due to the fatty cocoa butter in each bean). The solidified cocoa liquor is sold in supermarkets as unsweetened chocolate. The remaining of what cocoa bean has been extracted from the liquor is sold to consumers as dried cocoa powder. When this is combined with other ingredients such as sugar and milk, chocolate is produced.
As there are different flavours of chocolate, the ingredients would differ by just one or a few items. Generally in the 3 main types, these are the following ingredients:Cocoa mass, cocoa butter and sugar. For Milk Chocolate, additional milk is added whereas for White Chocolate, the usage of cocoa mass is absent. The Unsweetened Chocolate contains only cocoa mass and cocoa butter. Sugar and milk is exempted in the process of production.
In chocolate, it contains hundreds of chemicals, which includes the stimulants to ‘feel good’- Caffeine, Theobromine. But the amount of Caffeine in this brown food is very little and varies with each type of chocolate. In one ounce of dark chocolate, the amount ranges from 5mg to 10mg and in milk chocolate it’s 5mg. This is comparatively lesser than how much can be found in a cup of coffee (100mg-150mg). Theobromine, which is a bitter alkaloid, helps boost low blood sugar levels. Though it’s suitable for consumption, it is highly toxic to household pets as it overstimulates their cardiac and nervous systems which can cause death. In spite of being closely related, caffeine and theobromine have very different effects on human. Caffeine is a stronger stimulant and acts relatively quickly as a ‘wake-up’ drug whereas Theobromine tends to produce a mild sense of well-being over a longer period of time. Another chemical present is Chromium that helps control blood sugar.
Chocolate affects the mind, in terms of releasing hormones. It stimulates endorphins, natural hormones produced by the brain that has comforting and mood-elevating properties. The hormone gives one the feeling of pleasure and a sense of well being. Another reaction of chocolate is tryptophan, which is an essential amino acid needed for the brain to produce serotonin. Serotonin is a mood-modulating neurotransmitter and indulging high dosage level of this produces a feeling of happiness. Anandamide (another neurotransmitter) targets the brain structure. Chocolate also contains chemicals that slow down the normal breakdown of ananamide and prolong the action of it in the brain.
Other effects of chocolate are also evident in the body and heart. Cocoa products as well as fruits and tea contain high concentrations of flavonoids, phytochemicals that has been used as chemopreventive and antioxidant. They are used to defend against oxidation, improving endothelial function and reducing the risk of heart disease. In addition, consuming dark chocolate reduces the likelihood of getting hypertension, as the cocoa component lowers blood pressure. The cocoa content in chocolate has various minerals that are needed for the optimum functioning of the various systems in the body. The type of chocolate also differs in their function; dark chocolate contains high amount of magnesium. Consumption of chocolate also provides minerals that help the body to metabolize food into energy more efficiently.
Chocolate consumption is neither a bane nor a boon. It differs for many people and also the amount we eat as there are some ‘good’ chocolate for the body.
Reference
http://www.chocolatehouse1657.co.uk/content/view/34/42/ (Introduction)
http://www.cacaoweb.net/chocolate.html (List of Chocolates)
http://mujweb.atlas.cz/www/chocolate/en/production.htm (Ingredients of chocolate)
http://www.thegreenguide.com/reports/product.mhtml?id=6&sec=1 (How it’s produced)
http://www.medicalwellnessassociation.com/articles/chocolate_benefits.htm (Effects on mind, body and heart)
http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/bb/neuro/neuro04/web1/kcoveleskie.html (Effects on mind and body)
i <3
chocolate @
7:37 AM
Monday, December 8, 2008
hello! Mr Alvin Eun!
this is my topic for the individual assignment!
CHOCOLATE
i <3
chocolate @
5:23 AM
