Too much of anything can be a bad thing and that can certainly be true with chocolate. Tempting as it is, eating too much isn’t going to be good for your health, or your waistline.
But what if you’re a moderate consumer, enjoying an occasional chocolate treat as part of a balanced diet but you’re noticing ill effects?
From skin problems like acne, psoriasis and eczema to digestive troubles such as diarrhoea and constipation, food intolerances can wreak havoc on your health and wellbeing.
But could chocolate really be to blame?
What is a ‘chocolate intolerance’?
It sounds like a food nightmare doesn’t it – that delicious sweet treat you love just doesn’t love you back, causing a host of unwanted side effects.
When it comes to food intolerance, it’s important to think about the ingredients that go into the foods and drinks we consume. ‘Chocolate intolerance’ is a bit of a broad definition but, when you take a closer look at what goes into our favourite snack, you can see there are multiple ingredients which could be the root cause.
Dairy
Many chocolatey treats we know and love contain cows’ milk. White or milk chocolate certainly use dairy as a main ingredient. If you have a sensitivity to milk, this could be the reason that chocolate causes you problems.
Try opting for the dairy free versions, made with alternative milks. Or, if you don’t mind a richer and more bitter taste, dark chocolates might be right up your (quality) street.
Nuts
If you’re partial to a chunk of fruit and nut, you might not have realised that the almonds or hazelnuts could be causing you to feel unwell. Likewise, many popular chocolate spreads are made with nuts to give their distinct flavour.
Try switching to nut free versions of your favourite chocolate or opt for the freefrom versions of chocolate spread.
Cocoa bean
If the ingredients above aren’t your particular trigger foods, you might find that it’s the cocoa bean itself giving you problems. Whilst this is bad news for lovers of traditional chocolate, there are still options you can try. Carob makes for a tasty substitute and can be found in many freefrom chocolate alternatives.
Not sure which ingredient is to blame?
If picking out your individual trigger foods feels like choosing from a selection box without the menu, we can help.
Each and every one of us has our own unique profile when it comes to food intolerance and using guesswork can take a long time, especially as it’s fairly typical to have 3 to 4 reactions on average.
Our simple finger prick home-to-lab test analyses reactions to 134 food and drink ingredients, providing you with clear results in just 3 days. The sooner you know your profile, the sooner you can make the changes you need in order to feel fantastic.