Why Chocolate Is The Best Gift?

Chocolate has long been deemed one of the go-to gifts, but why is giving chocolate the best gift you can give? We have a few ideas, and we thought we'd share them with you here...

Gift of the Gods

Chocolate has a long, and rich history. Though not all of chocolate's history is positive (indeed some of its current history is deeply problematic) its origin story can be considered very grand indeed. Chocolate can be dated back to the Mayans, as far as 1500BC! It is generally understood that the Mayans believed chocolate to be a gift of the Gods, initially consuming it in the form of a beverage “xocolatl”, or "bitter water". The Mayan's even buried their dead with cocoa, believing it to be the best gift they could give to help them in their journey to the underworld. What better gift to receive than a gift from the Gods?!

Symbol of Love

Another well documented civilisation which adored the cocoa bean was the Aztecs. In fact, Montezuma II, an Aztec emperor was said to have consumed large quantities of chocolate (or rather the chocolate beverage produced at the time) in order to enhance his romantic prowess, believing it to be an aphrodisiac. It seems that he may have been onto something as chocolate contains phenylethylamine (PEA), a compound that can trigger feelings similar to those experienced when one is in love. What better gift to give to a loved one than the gift of feeling in love?

Chocolate Makes You Happy

Aside from PEA, it is also said that the consumption of chocolate releases endorphins and increases serotonin levels in the brain, enhancing mood and promoting feelings of happiness and well-being. In fact, studies have been done which suggest that eating 40g of dark chocolate per day can help to reduce stress by reducing levels of cortisol and catecholamine! What better gift to give than one which can make your recipient happier?

We think this makes a pretty compelling argument for why chocolate is the best gift you can give a loved one. Whether it's to say 'I Love You', 'Hope You Feel Better' or 'Congratulations' - chocolate can say it all! In fact, with one of our gift cards, you can literally say all of these things ;)