John Myers
Chocolate contains the so-called “happiness hormone” serotonin, which can have a positive effect on mood. Nevertheless, eating chocolate does not make you happy. For this, the serotonin would have to be able to dock to certain receptors in the brain. Here the serotonin fails due to an endogenous protective mechanism.
The body has a so-called blood-brain barrier. It filters out those substances from food that reach the brain. Serotonin cannot cross this barrier. This means that it does not reach the brain even if it is ingested through food.
Only the precursor of serotonin, the protein building block tryptophan, can pass the blood-brain barrier. It then forms the happiness hormone in the brain. However, tryptophan is present in chocolate in such small amounts that it cannot produce any discernible mood elevation. The same applies to other substances in chocolate, such as the intoxicant anandamide and stimulants such as caffeine and theobromine. While they can theoretically make you happy, the doses in a standard chocolate ration are too low to have a significant impact on well-being.
Nonetheless, chocolate can bring happiness through psychological processes, even if there is no biological justification for it. This is due to a kind of placebo effect. Expecting chocolate to make you happy, consuming it can actually lighten your mood.
The enjoyment of tasty food and the thought of doing something good for yourself and rewarding yourself with it makes you feel happy. The messenger substance dopamine is responsible for this. It is not contained in chocolate but is released by the body when it is enjoyed and influences the reward system in the brain.
Tip: Be inspired by our recipes that put you in a good mood!
