Eating Chocolate Can Make You Smarter, Says New Research

Chocolate fans are in for a bit of good news: a new study has found that chowing down on the brown stuff can make you smarter.

The study showed that people who eat chocolate at least once a week showed improved memory performance as well as better abstract thinking.

The researchers allow that “the impact of chocolate on cognitive function is not well understood”, but argue that their findings show “chocolate intake was positively associated with cognitive performance”.

The initial research began as a long-term study in the 1970s as a study into the effects of blood pressure on brain performance, carried out by psychologist Merrill Elias. The research was carried out over 30 years, with new data gathered every five years.

As part of his research, he began asking the 1,000 participants about their diet, only adding the question in 2001 and 2006. The new analysis was led by Georgia Crichton and published in Appetite journal.

They found a surprising link between brain power and chocolate intake; chocolate eaters had a boost when it came to every day memory tasks like remembering what you need from the shop, or multitasking.

Unfortunately, the scientists are not advocating a chocolate-heavy regime. Elias added, “I think what we can say for now is that you can eat small amounts of chocolate without guilt if you don’t substitute chocolate for a normal balanced healthy diet.”

Still, any excuse.

Image: WestEnd61/REX Shutterstock