Craving chocolate?
Are you a chocolate fan? Like, you really need it in your life? I had a friend at nursing college who would wake up in the middle of the night with the urge to eat a bar (or two). And she did – she kept a stash in her bedside table. With more understanding now, I can appreciate her need for a chocolate fix.
You see, chocolate is a source of magnesium and often, what our body may be crying out for when we crave chocolate, is magnesium. Why would Jo’s body have been needing magnesium? Several reasons perhaps – when you’re stressed, your body burns through more magnesium than normal. Moving away from home; studying for a demanding course; early shifts on busy wards; late nights socialising or partying would have been taking their toll. As students we ate a lot of processed food which is very low in magnesium, and when we did have veges, we over boiled them, leaching their nutrients into the water.
So Jo was getting her magnesium from chocolate. But what a vicious circle – to deal with all the added sugar in her diet, her body was using up even more magnesium! Of course, you could eat chocolate that has no added sugar. But you probably wouldn’t be able to eat enough of it to increase your magnesium levels sufficiently – that 90% cocoa stuff is bitter!
What we suggest is, yes, eat more foods that are high in magnesium for example whole wheat, leafy greens and nuts. But you can also top up your levels daily – quickly, easily and cheaply, by spraying on some Blants magnesium oil. 8 sprays gives you 100mg of elemental magnesium (your RDA is roughly 320mg for a female, 420mg for a male). After a few weeks, check in with yourself and see how much chocolate you’ve been eating.
