Biopsychology of Chocolate Craving

Abstract

Chocolate is the most desired food in the world, and it has always been considered as a pleasant food, sought after both for hedonistic reasons and for its role as a “panacea” for mood and affectivity. Multiple features of “the food of Gods” can explain how it is induced/increased to induce/increase the desire to eat it. Its unique orosensory qualities (i.e., taste, smell, aroma, and texture) mostly contribute to explaining the commonly shared acceptability of chocolate craving. Furthermore, chocolate determines a peculiar brain activity, activating analogous brain areas and neurobiological mechanisms than substances of abuse. Chocolate contains various biologically active components such as methylxanthine, biogenic amines, and cannabinoid-like fatty acids, all of which arguably own both biological and emotional activity. Chocolate may be consumed as a form of self-medication for dietary lacks or to compensate low levels of neurotransmitters implicated in the regulation of mood, appetite, and behavior. Chocolate consumption and cravings are often parossistic and vary along with hormonal fluctuations related to the menstrual cycle, which suggests a hormonal relationship. This chapter focuses on chocolate characteristics, by focusing on their relationships with the neurobiological mechanisms, which may contribute to maintaining chocolate addiction and craving.

Appendices

Appendix 11.1 Attitudes to Chocolate Questionnaire (ACQ) (Benton et al. 1998)

Choose the response that best describes your attitude	Strongly agree	Agree	Neither agree nor disagree	Disagree	Strongly disagree
1. I eat chocolate to cheer me up when I am down	1	2	3	4	5
2. My desire for chocolate often seems overpowering	1	2	3	4	5
3. I feel unattractive after I have eaten chocolate	1	2	3	4	5
4. I often feel sick after eating chocolate	1	2	3	4	5
5. I eat chocolate as a reward when everything is going really well for me	1	2	3	4	5
6. I am often on one kind of diet or another	1	2	3	4	5
7. The thought of chocolate often distracts me from what I am doing (e.g., watching TV)	1	2	3	4	5
8. I usually find myself wanting chocolate during the afternoon	1	2	3	4	5
9. I consider chocolate to be high in fat and to be of poor nutritional value	1	2	3	4	5
10. After eating chocolate, I often wish I hadn’t	1	2	3	4	5
11. I feel guilty after eating chocolate	1	2	3	4	5
12. I eat chocolate only when I am hungry	1	2	3	4	5
13. Chocolate often preys on my mind	1	2	3	4	5
14. I feel unhealthy after I have eaten chocolate	1	2	3	4	5
15. I always look at the caloric value of a chocolate snack before I eat it	1	2	3	4	5
16. If I resist the temptation to eat chocolate, I feel more in control of my life	1	2	3	4	5
17. Nothing else but chocolate will satisfy my chocolate	1	2	3	4	5

Appendix 11.2 Orientation to Chocolate Questionnaire (OCQ) (Cartwright and Stritzke 2008)

This questionnaire relates to your attitudes towards chocolate in the last month. Please indicate how much you agree with the statements below by circling the number corresponding most closely to your attitude during the last month. Your answers may range from agree not at all (1) with the statement to agree very strongly (9) with the statement.

I agree with this statement
1. I wanted to eat chocolate as soon as I had the chance	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
2. I deliberately occupied myself so I would not want chocolate	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
3. I liked to indulge in chocolate	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
4. I felt guilty after eating chocolate	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
5. I considered myself weak when I gave in to my chocolate cravings	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
6. My desire to have some chocolate seemed overwhelming	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
7. I felt unhealthy after I had eaten chocolate	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
8. I felt unhealthy after I had eaten chocolate	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
9. I did things to take my mind off chocolate	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
10. I felt dissatisfied with myself after eating chocolate	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
11. I was thinking about chocolate a lot of time	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
12. After eating chocolate, I often wished I hadn’t	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
13. I usually found myself wanting chocolate in the afternoons	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
14. I felt unattractive after eating chocolate	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9