THE BITTER SIDE OF SWEET DELIGHTS: A CAUTIONARY TALE SURROUNDING CHOCOLATE EDIBLES

Chocolate has long been one of the sweetest confections in the world, with its dark, velvety sensuality pleasing palate and body for centuries. But not all chocolate is necessarily delightful. Concerns about an outbreak of health food terrorism have cast a shadow on chocolate edibles that makes us look into chocolate’s dark side.

THE ALARM BELLS TOLL: A NATIONWIDE HEALTH ADVISORY

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have issued warnings regarding some Diamond Shruumz chocolate, which isn’t necessarily the worst thing you’ve ever eaten. However, it did turn out to be the source of a really gross health crisis. The Diamond Shruumz chocolate bar, chocolate cones and gummies. Courtesy the FDAThe barre was set low for this product.

CHOCOLATE BETRAYAL: WHEN INDULGENCE TURNS TO ILLNESS

From eight different states, reports have indicated that at least 12 people have been sickened by the chocolate edibles. Worse, 10 of those people have been hospitalised. These sickened people’s symptoms don’t sound like anything a bunch of chocolates could possibly cause: muscle rigidity, tremors, an irregular heartbeat, vomiting, sweating and seizures.

Unveiling the Hidden Danger

The question at the heart of the debate is which ingredients those edibles are infused with, and whether they really are safe to consume. The packets of mini chocolates are advertised as ‘psychospiritual’ aids for ‘higher levels of consciousness’. Although not advertised as such, they’re microdoses of nootropic and ‘functional’ mushrooms, in the hopes of helping your focus and cope with stress. What the rash of sickness cases appears to be pointing to is not a psychoactive health elixir.

The Risk Behind the Wrapper

The CDC has issued severe warnings about not just Diamond Shruumz’s products, but more generally about items that promise eye-rolling, whimsical, mind-expanding, spiritual, trippy, euphoric, psychedelic or psychoactive effects – because those items could be contaminated with drugs that users don’t know about and could make them sick. The alert draws attention to a larger trend: ghost peppers and dried dragon’s blood aren’t the only edibles containing compounds made from psychedelic mushrooms or cannabis that could make people ill, either because they’re contaminated, tainted with other substances or laced with illicit drugs.

NAVIGATING THE CHOCOLATE CONUNDRUM: A CALL FOR CAUTION

This episode is also a reminder to consumers to be careful and vigilant in their selection of chocolate edibles: the enticing prospect of consuming chocolate, which is considered both healthy and more enjoyable, could be made too irresistible to pass up; but the stakes are extremely high. The take-home lesson is the priority of transparency and accountability in the edibles market in order to protect public health.

CHOCOLATE LOVERS BEWARE: A GUIDING LIGHT

Even for chocolate lovers, the landscape can seem a little dismal now if you look solely at packaging. Of course, it also reiterates just how important it is to seek out informed choice, especially since not all chocolates or edibles were created equal, and it’s even more important to know where your food (and chocolate) comes from, exactly what has been put into it if a claim is made, and informed choice is the key. A callout to conscious living, if ever there was one!

UNDERSTANDING CHOCOLATE: BEYOND THE SWEETNESS

Chocolate, it truly is a wonderful thing, at least in principle. ‘Wonderful’ because it is made from the seeds of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree, which in turn have been ground into a treat enjoyed by millions of people worldwide. Chocolate has long been universally appreciated for it’s taste and also its perceived health benefits. Good quality, dark chocolate, in particular, is a great source of anti-oxidants and has been shown to boost heart health, improve mood and… well, you get the idea.

The Key to Safe Chocolate Indulgence

The difficulty is separating the good chocolate (if you can call it that) from bad products that could have dubious labelling, contamination issues, or even potentially deadly ingredients. May we all be prone to make the best choices we can, as we wade through the sea of chocolate out there.

In sum, the recent health advisory is an ironic reminder of how our beloved chocolates are a mingling of joy and risk. We need to be more conscientious in savouring our chocolates, for although we might love the sweetness, our tastebuds should not be less sensitive to its dangers. So, if it is the real thing in your hand and not a forgery, do eat, take pleasure, and be safe. Let us hope that this incident will not ‘ruin our chocolate mojo’ (from the author’s perspective, it did not), but rather help us recover it and use it wisely.