Is chocolate a drug?

Chocolate is a mixture of stimulating drugs or a "drug cocktail". Of the 300 chemical ingredients in chocolate several have stimulating and pleasure inducing effects. Listed below are some of the chemicals found in chocolate and how they may affect the brain. All of these are found in such small quantities that no single one satisfactorily explains why chocolate seems to make people feel good. 

Caffeine – Chocolate doesn’t contain nearly as much of this stimulant as coffee. A cup of coffee contains up to 150 milligrams of caffeine while the average chocolate candy bar contains only about 30 milligrams.

Theobromine – This is a weak but lasting stimulant. Incidentally, Theobroma cacao is the scientific name of the cacao tree, which is where cocoa comes from. Keep chocolate away from Fluffy or Fido. While humans can consume large quantities of theobromine, it's toxic to most animals.

Phenylethylamine – Sometimes called the “love-chemical” it's related to amphetamines. Phenylethylamine is a mood lifting agent found naturally in the human brain. Most of the phenylethylamine found in chocolate is metabolized before it gets to the brain.

Tryptophan – This is a precursor for serotonin. High levels of serotonin may produce feelings of elation and ecstasy.

Anandamide – This neurotransmitter targets the same structures of the brain as tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is the active ingredient in marijuana. Scientists point out that you’d have to eat huge quantities of chocolate to produce the same sort of high that is produced by THC. Chocolate also contains two chemicals known to slow the breakdown of anandamide. So it's possible that chocolate makes the mild effects of anandamide last longer.