It seems there could be a secondary advantage when buying chocolate eggs for your partner this easter, I have just finished conducting a survey of dating site members which revealed 78% of women say that eating high quality dark chocolate helps get them in the mood for lovemaking.
This isn't a new phenomenon, chocolate has long been thought of as an aphrodisiac the Aztecs Emperor Montezuma was noted as consuming vast quantities of the cocoa bean to fuel is lustful appetite for sex. A study conducted by urologists from Milan's San Raffaele hospital revealed that women who have a daily intake of chocolate showed higher levels of desire than women who did not have this habit, It also showed that chocolate can have a positive physiological impact on a woman's sexuality.
The aphrodisiac qualities of chocolate, are thought to come from two chemicals contained in it. The first is tryptophan, which is a key part of serotonin, a brain chemical prevalent in sexual arousal. The second is phenylethylamine, a brain stimulant similar to amphetamine, which is released when people develop romantic feelings. The Italian study also indicated that even women who normally had a lower libido reported an increase in their sex drive after consuming chocolate, which was backed up by the female members I spoke to whilst conducting my research.
78% of the 3000 women surveyed said that dark chocolate increased their sexual appetite, 48% said they would be put off a lover if he bought her a 'cheap' box of milk chocolates. One of the women I surveyed, Jessica 31 from Swansea said; "Chocolate makes me feel warm and happy when I eat it, It defiantly helps me get in the mood for love making."
There are other good reasons to spend this weekend eating some chocolate, It has recently been claimed that dark chocolate has antioxidant properties, that is can reduce blood pressure and could even help you loose weight.
Some researchers have argued that chocolates aphrodisiac properties are too small to have any measurable effect on desire. However even if the effects are are psychological, and not physiological it is still a good excuse to invest in some good quality chocolate for your lover this easter.