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Ecstasy - Color Magazine

EATING CHOCOLATE is like falling in love. When you have a crush on someone, you feel euphoric because your brain releases phenylethylamine, a chemical that increases happiness, raises your heart rate and gives you energy. Because the pituitary gland controls its release, anyone whose pituitary was damaged in childhood may never feel the ecstasy of falling in love - though they can show affection.

Chocolate contains the same chemical, and that's why people crave it when they break up with a sweetheart. In China, where the high cost of chocolate bars means the average person eats only one a year.

Liu Li, 18, of Kunming is the exception - she consumes 365. "I usually eat one each day," she says, "I love chocolate; it makes me feel comfortable. My parents think it'll do bad things to my teeth." Her parents can relax; recent studies show chocolate contains an anti-plaque agent that may prevent tooth decay.