First, there was news about a study that found that caffeine reduces muscle pain caused by exercise and now researchers in England seem to think that mental arithmetic becomes easier when chocolate is involved.

But before those of you trying to complete your tax returns go nuts on chocolate, you’d better have a good read of the study because it’s not as clear cut as us chocoholics would like it to be. Yes, it seems that the study participants, after partaking in large amounts of flavanols (the compounds found in chocolate), did do better when asked to count backwards in groups of three from a random number between 800 and 999. But when these same participants were asked to count backwards by sevens, the ingested chocolate was of no help.

According to the researchers, this is because this more complex task uses a different part of the brain. Huh?

Still, as tax day gets closer, I’m sure I’ll be eating a chocolate or two to help make the numbers look better.

(image from sxc.hu)

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Not to worry. A new study has the answer. Just walk away and keep on walking – fast. They took a group of ‘known’ chocoholics (who usually ate at least two 50 gram bars of chocolate a day) and deprived them of chocolate for three days in an effort to induce the chocolate cravings. The participants were also not allowed to drink coffee or exercise in the two hours prior to the test period. 

On test day, one group sat quietly for 15 minutes while the other group spent 15 minutes walking briskly on treadmills.

After this, all participants were given a computerized test (the stressor) and had to unwrapped and handled a chocolate bar that they were not allowed to eat it.

Those who had been walking had significantly less craving for the chocolate as compared to their baseline response before the three day chocolate fast.

They didn’t mention how the other group did, but I’d imagine sitting there with an unwrapped chocolate bar in their hands was pretty torturous.

So remember, whenever that chocolate craving hits these holidays, take a hike.

Just make sure you leave the chocolate bar behind…..

(source)

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But what about lying around in bed for three months and getting paid $5000 a month for doing so?

Well, according to Wired Science that’s just what NASA is asking people to volunteer for.

NASA is running a ‘Bed Rest Study’ at it’s Human Test Subject Facility at Johnson Space Center to examine the effects of microgravity on the human body.

Want to know more – check out this Q&A with a NASA Scientist about the study.

It might sound like a dream but it could easily turn into a nightmare…

On the other hand, if you combined it with the Getting Paid to Eat Chocolate research, it might just be worth it!!!

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Free Viagra

Now here’s a politician that really cares about his constituents. Gonzalo Navarette Munoz, mayor of a municipality near the Chilean capital Santiago, wants to improve the quality of life for the older people in the working class suburb of Lo Prado by handing out potency pills.

Jailhouse Menu – could this be the next new diet?

Do you believe this? An inmate in an Arkansas jail awaiting trial on a murder charge is suing the county jail for weight loss. Apparently he’s lost over 100 pounds in the last eight months because of the food he is being given. Now he only weighs 308 pounds. You’d think he’d be happy with the weight loss. Go figure…

Wanted: Women to eat chocolate for a year

Personally, I think the heading says it all. Just tell me where to sign up…

‘Pixie Dust’ From Pig’s Bladder Regrows Man’s Finger

Okay, so it’s not really ‘pixie dust’. The experimental powder that has helped a man’s severed finger regrow to its original length in just four weeks is really ‘extra-cellular matrix’ made from a dried pig’s bladder. But doesn’t ‘Pixie Dust’ sounds so much more magical.  No matter what you call it, it seems to be working.

And finally…

Dinosaur Dung as a motivational tool ?

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