The quick answer is "no." But unfortunately for you chocoholics waiting in the wings, its just not as simple as that.  Like any food, if enjoyed in moderation,chocolate has several notable health benefits.  But there's a dark side to chocolate that you ought to keep in mind as well.

Here are some benefits

• Cacao, the source of chocolate, contains antibacterial agents that fight tooth decay. However, chocolate with a high sugar content will negate this benefit. Dark chocolate contains significantly higher amounts of cacao and lower amounts of sugar than white chocolate, making it more healthful.
• The smell of chocolate may increase theta brain waves, resulting in relaxation.
• Chocolate contains phenyl ethylamine, a mild mood elevator.
• The cocoa butter in chocolate contains oleic acid, a mono-unsaturated fat which can raise good cholesterol.
• Men who eat chocolate regularly live on average one year longer than those who don't.
• The flavanoids in chocolate help keep blood vessels elastic.
• Chocolate increases antioxidant levels in the blood.
• The carbohydrates in chocolate raise serotonin levels in the brain, resulting in a sense of well-being.

Now for the Risks

• Chocolate may contribute to lower bone density.
• Chocolate can trigger headaches in migraine sufferers.
• Milk chocolate is high in calories, saturated fat and sugar.
• Chocolate is a danger to pets (chocolate contains a stimulant called theobromine, which animals are unable to digest).

Additionally, there are dozens of rumors and myths regarding the benefits as well as the risks of chocolate.  Here are a few things chocolate will not do.

Chocolate Won't:

• Cause acne.
• Make you nervous or irritable: cacao contains the stimulants caffeine and bromine, but not in significant amounts in chocolate bars and nibs.
• Turn you into an addict: chocolate is not addictive.
• Raise your cholesterol: chocolate contains stearic acid, a neutral fat which doesn't raise bad cholesterol.

My decision to prove chocolate was based mainly on clinical experience. Patients often reported adverse effects from eating chocolate, sometimes resulting in severe symptoms. The number of patients who were seriously addicted to chocolate was always impressive. It seemed that those desiring chocolate far exceeded any other food craving. These addictions were not so much a physical but rather an emotional phenomena. Chocolate is often used as a substitute for love, an idea often exploited by the emphasis on romantic themes in chocolate advertisements. In patients the desire often arose at times of emotional stress especially regarding relationships. Research has showed a connection between chocolate and enzymes produced when people fall in love.

Chocolate addiction has become a serious problem in today's society. It is quite amazing to see the number of outlets where chocolate can be purchased. Every shop or garage carries a large supply, and Chocolate is often bought as a 'comforting treat' alongside other purchases. Chocolate has become a major feature of late 20th century culture. Another theme that seemed to emerge was the affinity between Chocolate and the circulatory/ hormonal systems. The need for Chocolate often appeared in connection with menses. Chocolate is known to contain many substances that affect the heart. It has been reported to cause heart failure in animals. Blood and heart relate to love, sharing the function of supplying warmth and nourishment, thereby supporting the idea of chocolate as a 'love substitute'.

Having decided to prove chocolate, a major dilemma was choosing between chocolate in its current processed form, or as the Cocoa bean. There are arguments for both ideas. It is often desirable to prove purer substances rather then complex ones. On the other hand, the modern processed chocolate is the substance craved by so many, and therefore might contain other ingredients important to the proving, the sum of which may be more then the parts. In the end my decision was to prove the purest form of processed chocolate, in the hope that a proving of the cocoa bean would follow.

This proving was undertaken concurrently with the proving of Hydrogen, in order to create a double blind trial. The effects were no less powerful, as the remedy had a profound effect on many of the provers. The duration of action was extremely prolonged, in some cases well over a year.

One proving has been retained as a whole in order to preserve the remarkable theme that emerged. I have also included reports from chocoholics and of cases relating strongly to chocolate. No doubt many more reports and cases will lead to a further understanding in the future.

Let us hope that this food, once used as currency and worshipped as food of the gods, and now such a common symbol of modern civilization, will provide us with another efficient agent for the healing of human kind.

Jeremy Sherr 1993