Dark Chocolate More Filling Than Milk Chocolate

COPENHAGEN—Research at the Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen, reveals that dark chocolate is more filling than milk chocolate, lessening the craving for sweet, salty and fatty foods.

Researchers compared the effects of dark and milk chocolate on both appetite and subsequent calorie intake on a group of 16 young and healthy men of normal weight who all liked both varieties. All fasted for 12 hours beforehand and were offered 100g of chocolate, which they consumed in the course of 15 minutes over two separate sessions. Participants registered their appetite every half hour, i.e. their hunger, satiety, craving for special foods and how they liked the chocolate. Two and a half hours after eating the chocolate, participants were offered pizza ad lib and instructed to eat until they felt comfortably satiated. After the meal, the individuals’ calorie intake was registered.

The calorie intake at the subsequent meal where they could eat as much pizza as they liked was 15 percent lower when they had eaten dark chocolate beforehand. Participants also stated that the plain chocolate made them feel less like eating sweet, salty or fatty foods.