When Julia Somberg eats her favorite food, she feels bad. She knows that chocolate can have a lot of fat and sugar. But Julia says she loves chocolate so much—once she starts eating it, she can’t stop. Julia isn’t the only one who loves chocolate. It is favorite food for people all over the world. People prefer chocolate over ice cream, cakes and cookies.
The idea of eating chocolate didn’t begin until the 19th century. Before that people drank chocolate. The habit began in Central America where the Aztecs drank bowls of chocolate to stay watchful. When the liquid chocolate was brought to Spain in the 1500s, people thought it was medicine because it had a medicine taste. In fact, the people who made chocolate into drinks were doctors. Then people discovered that mixing chocolate with sugar made a wonderful drink. King Ferdinand of Spain loved this drink so much that he put out an order:anyone who talked about chocolate outside the court would be killed. For about 100 years, chocolate was a secret in Spain.
People finally found out about chocolate, and it became a popular drink in Europe. The Swiss mixed milk and chocolate. Today most Americans prefer milk chocolate, while Europeans prefer dark chocolate.
New research shows that chocolate is actually good for us. “Chocolate has more than 300 different chemicals. One chemical works on the parts of the brain that feels pleasure. People who feel good when they eat chocolate are actually healthier. Feeling pleasure is important for health and can protect against illness.” “Good chocolate doesn’t have much fat or sugar. You can enjoy it if you eat a little at a time!” says Tara Berish, another chocolate love.
【小题1】When did the idea of eating chocolate begin?