The Magical Thing Eating Chocolate Does To Your Brain

[lollipop]

The Magical Thing Eating Chocolate Does to Your Brain lolol

The magical thing eating chocolate does to your brain

 

[Such_Saturation]

Elias, who admits that he expected to observe the opposite effect—that chocolate, given its sugar content, would be correlated with stunted rather than enhanced cognitive abilities.

 

[lollipop]

TOTALLY @Such_Saturation genius is born...

 

[Such_Saturation]

 

[sm1693]

Unfortunately, it appears to me at first glance to be serotonin induced "benefits."

"eating chocolate was significantly associated with superior "visual-spatial memory and [organization], working memory, scanning and tracking, abstract reasoning, and the mini-mental state examination."

The chocolate these folks are eating is laced with soy lecithin, milk powder and vanilla; legendary gut disruptors.

"We found that people who eat chocolate at least once a week tend to perform better cognitively,"

Serotonin can be produced as long as the offending substance is in the intestines, so it can be produced and last for several days depending on clearance rates. I'm doubting other substances can compare to that length based on experience.

 

[Strongbad]

Serotonin is not a bad thing. HIGH serotonin is.

Serotonin reduces the downstream conversion of tyrosine to adrenaline, which increases dopamine, and dopamine increases confidence, motivation and sex drive.

 

[sm1693]

My post refers to high serotonin, not the average amount of serotonin needed in a well functioning body.

 

[dookie]

superior "visual-spatial memory and [organization], working memory, scanning and tracking, abstract reasoning, and the mini-mental state examination."

.

So you are saying all those improvements are related to high serotonin? What would the downside of serotonin then be, in your opinion?

 

[sm1693]

My own highly abstract personal opinion is that those "improvements" are based off of a form of serotonin.

The downsides of this form of serotonin would be: "visual-spatial memory and [organization], working memory, scanning and tracking, abstract reasoning"

As well as: irrational anger, lack of positive emotions, inability to relax.

All of the above can be very useful short-term, but they are becoming full-time descriptors for a vast amount of people.

 

[Peater Piper]

Serotonin can be produced as long as the offending substance is in the intestines, so it can be produced and last for several days depending on clearance rates. I'm doubting other substances can compare to that length based on experience.

I was under the impression that serotonin produced in the gut can't cross the blood-brain barrier, that serotonin has to be produced directly in the brain to be accessed by the brain.

 

[dookie]

My own highly abstract personal opinion is that those "improvements" are based off of a form of serotonin.

The downsides of this form of serotonin would be: "visual-spatial memory and [organization], working memory, scanning and tracking, abstract reasoning"

As well as: irrational anger, lack of positive emotions, inability to relax.

All of the above can be very useful short-term, but they are becoming full-time descriptors for a vast amount of people.

Improved memory and thinking; how is that downsides?

Have you found any good ways to reduce serotonin?

 

[sm1693]

I was under the impression that serotonin produced in the gut can't cross the blood-brain barrier, that serotonin has to be produced directly in the brain to be accessed by the brain.

Serotonin itself doesn't pass the barrier, but it appears that hydroxytryptophan does.

"Udenfriend et al.4 have found that the normal precursor -of serotonin, viz., hydroxytryptophan, when injected peripherally into animals, passes the barrier and is converted into excess serotonin in the brain. Consequently the peripheral administration of this precursor has been found to increase the serotonin content of the brain."

http://www.pnas.org/content/43/1/128.full.pdf

It's only a short leap to thinking that tryptophan or hydroxytryptophan (if found in foods or made by body) can get into the blood stream and into the brain.

This is only the research side. On my own personal experimentation side, there is no doubt in my mind that the food/drink/sun I ingest could cause high brain serotonin.

 

[sm1693]

Improved memory and thinking; how is that downsides?

Have you found any good ways to reduce serotonin?

The human animal has to act appropriately in the situation that they are in to thrive. Responding to every situation with abstract reasoning is enough to get someone labeled autistic (by me).

 

[Parsifal]

Serotonin is not a bad thing. HIGH serotonin is.

Serotonin reduces the downstream conversion of tyrosine to adrenaline, which increases dopamine, and dopamine increases confidence, motivation and sex drive.

That's interesting. Do you have anything to read on the topic please?

By the way, chocolate has a lot of resveratrol in it which is oestrogenic.

 

[michael94]

I wouldn't worry about the resveratrol being estrogenic after all isn't the biggest source of estrogen synthesized in our own body and originates in the gut?

http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/93/1/62.full I'd expect chocolate to have an estrogen lowering effect, especially long term.

 

[Peater Piper]

Serotonin itself doesn't pass the barrier, but it appears that hydroxytryptophan does.

Interesting. From what I can tell, hydroxytryptophan isn't produced by bacteria, but tryptophan can be, which isn't something I was aware of.

 

[Strongbad]

That's interesting. Do you have anything to read on the topic please?

By the way, chocolate has a lot of resveratrol in it which is oestrogenic.

lmgtfy

Your welcome

 

[lollipop]

My own highly abstract personal opinion is that those "improvements" are based off of a form of serotonin.

The downsides of this form of serotonin would be: "visual-spatial memory and [organization], working memory, scanning and tracking, abstract reasoning"

As well as: irrational anger, lack of positive emotions, inability to relax.

All of the above can be very useful short-term, but they are becoming full-time descriptors for a vast amount of people.

A brief Google search shows chocolate has both effects:

Dark Chocolate & Serotonin Levels

Chocolate & Dopamine

 

[Strongbad]

That's interesting. Do you have anything to read on the topic please?

By the way, chocolate has a lot of resveratrol in it which is oestrogenic.

BTW, estrogen is not a bad thing. Estrogen makes copper and zinc bioavailable. Women who go through menopause have a drastic drop in estrogen, combined with a drop in zinc and copper, for the same reasons.

Problems only arise when you have high or low estrogen. Normal estrogen level is fine.

Also, some people will be genetically high adrenal/low thyroid and vice versa. Those who thrive on high adrenals will benefit from estrogen.

This is why Peating creates mixed results. It works on some but fails on others. It depends on the person's biochemistry. Gbolduev posts elaborate more on this.

 

[jyb]

Chocolate does something negative to my sleep. It took me a few years to realise it, it's one of these things which effect is only seen a long time after being eaten so it was extremely difficult to establish the cause and effect. It's a shame because otherwise, I have only positive effects from chocolate to report during day time.