The Effects of Chocolate’s Cacao Content on Women's Health and Wellbeing

In this paper, we sought to understand the effects of chocolate’s cacao content on women's health and well being. Previous research has found that chocolate helps relieve negative symptoms of the female menstrual cycle such as chocolate cravings, intensity of menstrual cramp pain, fatigue symptoms, and fluctuating emotional symptoms, such as anxiety, irritability, depression, and anger. In our correlational study, we tested the strength of these relationships by examining naturalistic daily changes in their variables longitudinally over a period of nine days. We measured cacao by the amount of chocolate consumed multiplied by the percentage of its cacao content, and we rated chocolate craving, mood, menstrual pain, and fatigue by subjective scales taken three times a day. Data pooled across participants in our study showed that cacao consumption was significantly correlated with chocolate craving but not with menstrual pain, mood, or fatigue. Our research question was if cacao could be a factor in helping with a woman's monthly menstrual cycle and the symptoms that accompany these fluctuations in hormones and monthly pains, moods, cravings, and fatigue. Because of the limitations of the college schedule and lining up each participant's monthly menses, we were not able to capture the specific time of the month that would show increased symptoms, leading to more specific data on cacao being a factor as it relates specifically to a woman's monthly menstrual cycle.