I just tried it. I did not enjoy the taste, although it does smell chocolatey. I felt like I had to choke down the second half. If it’s going to be bitter, I’d rather it were stronger. Maybe I didn’t stir it enough. I think I’ll use milk next time. I did find this: https://criobru.com/ apparently people do brew cacao like coffee. They say the “cacao” is similar to cocoa (same plant), but less processed.
I found this abstract suggesting that theobromine doesn’t affect mood or vigilance at reasonable doses. But this one suggests that chocolate does.
Subjectively, I feel that my cup of cocoa today might have reduced my usual lethargy and improved my mood a little bit, but not as dramatically as I’d hoped for. I can’t be certain this isn’t just the placebo effect.
The first linked study tests 100, 200, and 400 mg Theobromine. A rough heuristic based on the toxic doses of the two chemicals suggests 750 mg, maybe a little more (based on subjective experience) is equivalent to 100mg caffeine or a cup of coffee (this is roughly the dose I’ve been using each day), so I wouldn’t expect a particularly strong effect for the first two. The 400 mg condition does surprise me; the sample size of the study is small (n = 24 subjects * 1 trial per condition), so the fact that it failed to find statistical significance shouldn’t be too big of an update, though.
I also noticed that it suppressed my appetite. Again, that’s only from trying it once, but it might be useful for weight loss. I’m not sure if that’s due to the theobromine, or just due to the fact that cocoa is nutritionally dense.
I just tried it. I did not enjoy the taste, although it does smell chocolatey. I felt like I had to choke down the second half. If it’s going to be bitter, I’d rather it were stronger. Maybe I didn’t stir it enough. I think I’ll use milk next time. I did find this: https://criobru.com/ apparently people do brew cacao like coffee. They say the “cacao” is similar to cocoa (same plant), but less processed.
Milk does take the edge off, even with no added sweeteners. I had no trouble swallowing the whole thing this way.
I found this abstract suggesting that theobromine doesn’t affect mood or vigilance at reasonable doses. But this one suggests that chocolate does.
Subjectively, I feel that my cup of cocoa today might have reduced my usual lethargy and improved my mood a little bit, but not as dramatically as I’d hoped for. I can’t be certain this isn’t just the placebo effect.
The first linked study tests 100, 200, and 400 mg Theobromine. A rough heuristic based on the toxic doses of the two chemicals suggests 750 mg, maybe a little more (based on subjective experience) is equivalent to 100mg caffeine or a cup of coffee (this is roughly the dose I’ve been using each day), so I wouldn’t expect a particularly strong effect for the first two. The 400 mg condition does surprise me; the sample size of the study is small (n = 24 subjects * 1 trial per condition), so the fact that it failed to find statistical significance shouldn’t be too big of an update, though.
I also noticed that it suppressed my appetite. Again, that’s only from trying it once, but it might be useful for weight loss. I’m not sure if that’s due to the theobromine, or just due to the fact that cocoa is nutritionally dense.