We all know chocolate is an aphrodisiac – that isn’t anything new. But how did chocolate become so connected to love and our sensual side?
Chocolate is undeniably sexy. Its shine. It's dark color. The gentle snap and the way it just instantly melts in your mouth. Chocolate is decadent, and represents passion.
Historically, chocolate was considered “the food of the gods”- it’s regal, fit for only deities. If you will, it is a forbidden fruit, but nonetheless a forbidden seed that satisfies.
As of the mid 1800s, chocolate was marketed specifically for lovers. The heart-shaped chocolate box was originally created by Cadbury – the Cadbury that still leads the chocolate industry to this day! The boxes were covered with cupids, hearts and roses in order to use it for keeping love letters and tokens of affection.
Later, Hershey came out with chocolate kisses. Whenever you give someone a simple piece of chocolate, you give them a kiss! Such a clever move that marketed love with the sweet treat.
Chocolate became even more sultry with the introduction of the “lingerie box” in the mid 1900s. The boxes were designed with black satin and lace, filled with chocolate, and screamed sex. The media picked up the seductive symbol of chocolate and placed it in films, so that then chocolate became as much connected with sensuality as even Marilyn Monroe!
There is a reason that chocolate covered strawberries became the go-to on Valentine's Day. The bright crimson of the juicy fruit, dipped in the snappy chocolate brought chocolate full circle as it became the not-so-forbidden chocolate covered fruit. It may not be an apple, but chocolate covered strawberries came close. Valentine's Day, the day for lovers merged with pagan fertility, gained the tradition of gifting chocolate because of the pure passion that chocolate induced.
Chocolate can be naughty, and for the reasons of mischief and lust, chocolate is the most popular Valentine’s Day tradition. People buy their lovers chocolate because history says so, but also because it is a catalytic component of love, passion, and happiness. No really! Chocolate is know to release endorphins into the brain!
As Elle Woods in Legally Blonde says, “Endorphins make you happy; happy people don’t just go out and kill their husbands” (Men- I guarantee the safest way to survive the romantic holiday is to buy your wife a box of chocolates.)