White, Milk or Dark?

After being in business in my chocolate store for 5 years now, I still prefer white chocolate or milk chocolate over dark, despite the widely proclaimed health benefits of dark chocolate. I eat about one piece of chocolate a day, sometimes two, but not 6 or more like my skinny husband. My husband likes dark chocolate. Personally I find dark chocolate drier and more bitter than milk chocolate. I like the smoothness of white and milk chocolate and the creaminess ... and how it melts in my mouth. I don't know if there is more sugar in white and milk chocolate. I would have look at the ingredients or ask someone at the Leonidas office.
Because I lost 50Lbs with Weight Watchers last year and because someone asked, one day I calculated the Point value of our chocolates. Our chocolates range from 1 to 3 Points per chocolate. Why do people proclaim that dark chocolate is healthier? I believe it is mainly because 1) it is higher in fiber, 2) it doesn't contain any milk and 3) it has more cocoa butter, which has all the anti-oxidants. You may think that chocolates without added sugar have less calories than regular chocolates. This is not the case. The sugar content makes very little difference in the caloric value.
Anti-oxidants help prevent cancer, heart disease and others. They are found in foods such as blueberries, red wine, green tea, chocolate and others.
Chocolate helps lower LDL cholesterol and therefor chocolate is helpful in the prevention of high blood pressure and hart disease.
Since chocolate is high in Magnesium it increases one's mood. You probably will notice having a better mood after eating a piece of chocolate. I used to work in a health food store until I started my chocolate store 5 years ago. Not until I had my own store did I notice that I had far less colds symptoms than before and also that most people that would enter my store had a good mood. While working in the health food store, I was constantly fighting off colds and people were generally feeling pretty louzy. I don't think it was because they didn''t get to their morning chocolate yet. Most people that enter my store comment on how good it smells. The atmosphere filled with the smell of fresh chocolate alone may give people a better mood when they enter my store. Just like when baking the smell fills the house and gives us a sense of cozyness, warmth and togetherness.
Speaking of morning chocolate - my ex-sister-in-law always put a block of Cote d'Or Double Lait chocolate on the breakfast table. I also have clients who have their daily dark Leonidas Napolitain chocolate with their breakfast. It's like taking your daily vitamins every morning - have a Napolitain or have 3 dark Leonidas Perles Pure with breakfast - your anti-oxydant pills - my prescription to you. (This makes me feel good because it reminds me of my training as a pharmacist) . So should you switch to dark only chocolate? I guess you should. But if you really cannot get yourself there, have a piece of milk chocolate. All the benefits of dark chocolate are still there and the few extra calories really won't make a big difference, as long as you're not going to double your dose of daily anti-oxidant pills to make up for the missing anti-oxidants of the dark chocolate! The key is control - one can enjoy every food or drink available in the world as long as it is consumed in a controled and sensible way.
One day I will write an extensive blog on the benefits of chocolates, but today I have to limit myself to the above.
You can fill your prescription for anti-oxidant pills at www.leonidas.ca!