Does Chocolate Cause Acne?
Don’t you think that whenever you find something indulgent, something nice – especially if it’s something to eat – there are always plenty of people waiting around to tell you just how bad it is for you? That’s what it’s like with chocolate. OK – tooth decay and obesity – perhaps there may be something in those arguments that chocolate is a cause – but acne? Are you serious?
Thankfully, recent studies have shown just how good for you that chocolate – especially dark chocolate – can actually be. The higher the cocoa solid content, the lower the fat content and so the better it is for you. So, with chocolate, the darker the better is the rule to go by.
But let’s have a closer look at the long-persistent myth that chocolate causes acne. Could there be any truth in that? Chocolate has in fact been discounted as a cause of acne. Research suggests that chocolate neither causes acne nor makes acne breakouts worse. Ironically, the much maligned chocolate may even help to ease the ferocity of an acne breakout. It appears that chocolate boosts a person’s levels of serotonin. Serotonin in turn soothes the brain and nerves. If the nerves in the skin are calmed, then that should actually ease an outbreak of acne, not make it worse. Hooray for chocolate!
Another way in which chocolate may assist in preventing acne is through the levels of antioxidants that it contains. A bar of chocolate, particularly dark chocolate with high levels of cocoa solids, contains about a third of the antioxidants that is an adult’s recommended daily intake. Antioxidants will help to eliminate free radicals in the body, which is beneficial in avoiding heart attacks, cancer and other life-threatening diseases, as well as acne.
The persistence of the mythical link between chocolate and acne is fueled by the fact that fat and sugars do exacerbate acne. But greasy fries, pizza etc are a more significant contributor to acne than chocolate it. It’s the sugars that are the problem as they actually feed the bacteria which angers pimples, boils and cysts. If you eat good quality dark chocolate, there is less sugar in it, which makes it less of an acne trigger. Also, without the milk content, chocolate has less fat in it, so it is less likely to cause obesity too.
If you need further proof that chocolate does not cause acne, then how about this for a rebuttal to the argument that chocolate causes acne? – Chocolate is actually a major ingredient in the newest skincare products specifically for acne which you can find on the market. That’s right – science is actually showing how chocolate can help to combat acne.
Chocolate is a great skin softener. Its antioxidants are also useful in combating those dreaded wrinkles. According to its ingredients, namely cocoa (i.e. the main ingredient of good, dark chocolate), chocolate affords protection against free radicals, which also helps to stop the breakdown of collagen and elastin in the skin. That should help to guard against pimples and scars – even acne scars!
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