Chocolate Addiction
How much chocolate do you eat? Millions of kids and even
adults are addicted to chocolate. In fact, we consume over 2 billion
pounds annually in the U.S.. That adds up to over 11 pounds per
person. Indeed, the typical American chocolate consumer knows he
isn't nibbling on chocolate bars for health and dietary reasons. It
is the one confection we literally hate to love, but it seems the
wages of sin make it taste that much better.
If you're one of those who
secretly knows that you are a chocolate addict and frequently go on
chocolate binges, it's time you realize and read up on some of its
effects on your body.
During the last several decades
the scientific literature has pointed to chocolate for its alleged
role in many body maladies. They have discovered that chocolate can
cause migraines, acne, obesity, dental cavities, heartburn, rectal
itching, and coronary problems. And a new study implicates two
chemicals in chocolate - theobromine and caffeine - as villains in a
disorder known as fibrocystic breast disease. This benign ailment is
characterized by fibrous tissue and cyst fluid in the breasts.
Chocolate also contains methylxanthines which accelerate chemical
activity involved in the body's cellular metabolism and can cause
certain sensitive tissues to proliferate. WOMEN WITH FIBROCYSTIC
BREAST DISEASE ARE FOUR TIMES MORE LIKELY TO DEVELOP BREAST CANCER
AS NORMAL WOMEN.
