Milk Chocolate Facts

Isn’t it a better idea to gobble up a bar of milk chocolate than spend your time reading about facts related to it? Of course it is, but wouldn’t you wanna find out interesting stuff about that bar of sweet sin which makes you throw your fitness logic out of the window? I bet you would!

Happiness is life served up with a scoop of acceptance, a topping of tolerance and sprinkles of hope, although chocolate sprinkles also work. ~ Robert Brault

Humanity is infinitely indebted to the Olmecs, Mayans and Aztecs but for whose discovery of the edible potentials of the Cacao seeds, the world would have had to carry the burden of a dismal existence devoid of the sensuously palatable benevolence of chocolate! Life would have been so unbearable, especially for us women, if we were deprived of the magnanimous consolation of being able to drown the minor sniffles as well as the significant melancholies of our lives in the bittersweet layers of chocolate!

Let us look at some very interesting milk chocolate facts that will amaze as well as amuse you and which every chocoholic worth his/her bar of dark dessert should be aware of!

Facts About Milk Chocolate

Before getting to milk chocolate facts, let’s first briefly discuss what milk chocolate is. Milk chocolate falls under those types of chocolate which contains milk powder, liquid milk or condensed milk added to a small percentage of chocolate liquor. This is unlike proper dark chocolate which does not include any milk content at all. The amount or percentage of cocoa solids or chocolate liquor that should be added to milk chocolate differs in different countries of the world.

The US government necessitates including at least 10% chocolate liquor to all milk chocolates manufactured in the US whereas the EU regulations compel the addition of at least 25% cocoa solids to all chocolates manufactured within its regional and legal jurisdiction. Now, let’s take a look at some very interesting milk chocolate facts!

• Spain introduced milk chocolate to Europe for the first time in the 1600s and the first commercial milk chocolate bars were produced by Cadbury’s in England in the mid 1800s. Cadbury’s is still considered as the manufacturer of some of the best milk chocolates till date!
• Though not as rich in antioxidants as dark chocolate, milk chocolates do trigger the release of endorphins when eaten in a moderate quantity. A rush of endorphins lead to an instant lifting of the mood and induces a positive feeling which can be described as being somewhere more than satisfaction and falling just a little short of euphoric ecstasy.

• The caffeine content in a 1 oz bar of milk chocolate is only 6 mg as compared to a 5 oz cup of instant coffee which can have a caffeine content between 40 – 108 mg. See? Grabbing some milk chocolate is healthier than going for that cup of coffee!
• Does chocolate cause acne? As opposed to previous speculations linking consumption of milk chocolate to acne, recent research has ruled out this possibility, stating that the outbreak of acne is more about hormonal and overall dietary factors.
• A 1.65 oz bar of milk chocolate has only 12 mg of cholesterol as compared to a 1 oz piece of cheddar processed cheese whose cholesterol content is 30 mg!

Facts About Chocolate

After browsing through specific facts about milk chocolate, let us take a tour of some interesting facts about chocolate in general.

• As opposed to conventional beliefs that chocolate leads to tooth decay, recent studies have proved that tooth decay occurs totally due to maintenance of poor oral hygiene and due to the exposure of teeth to fermentable carbohydrates for a long time. In fact, chocolate contains certain ingredients, especially certain dark chocolate ingredients, that are believed to be able to hamper the decaying process of teeth!

• We can find numerous instances of people being allergic to certain kinds of foods and edible products, including chocolates. However, recent studies show that the probability of finding someone allergic to chocolate is relatively rare as compared to finding people who are allergic to other food products! You see, chocolate allergy is very uncommon among humans!
• The word chocolate is derived from the Aztec word xocolatl, meaning bitter water.

• The Mayans and Aztecs,who invented chocolate, held chocolate and cocoa beans in such high regard that these beans were used as currency and as a calculation unit by these civilizations!
• One of the most interesting dark chocolate facts is that its high antioxidant content is a great catalyst that works towards reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer. Aren’t these amazing dark chocolate benefits a blessing for chocoholics? Also, owing to the high antioxidant content and other dark chocolate nutrition, it helps retard the aging process of various organs and rejuvenates the brain by keeping us stress free.

• Although moderately high in its fat content, chocolate does not raise our blood cholesterol levels, emerging as a heart friendly dessert option and healthy snack for those who have acute sweet teeth.
• There are over 500 flavor components to chocolate which is way ahead of those found in vanilla and strawberry!

• Remember the famous shower scene in Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho that assumed cult status among movies belonging to the psychological horror-thriller genre? Well, the blood that was shown is that scene was nothing but chocolate syrup!
• The ageless love affair between women and chocolate is legendary and the feminine partiality towards this dark, bittersweet indulgence is what has given rise to speculations of chocolate being among primary aphrodisiacs for women!

Those were some interesting milk chocolate facts, along with some generic facts about chocolate! Hope you enjoyed reading them as much as you enjoy eating a bar of chocolate. Now that you know chocolate is good for your heart and is not to be blamed for your skin condition, go ahead, fling that shroud of guilt out of the window and resume enjoying the sweet, dark indulgence of chocolaty sin!

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