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.