News Flash! Healing Powers of Chocolate Sweetens Spring Fever in March

Intentional Chocolate

By Cal Orey, The Writing Gourmet

The first day of spring arrives next Tuesday, March 20. You may not be sick, but spring fever can make you feel under the weather. Just when you think SAD (seasonal affective disorder) is over, spring fever can spook you like a monster movie. Picture this: You're experiencing snow or rain one day, sunny skies the next, and slush or black ice is lurking outdoors morning and night. It's March, and you find yourself with unwanted body fat, irritable, and fed up with seasonal changes. Chocolate is key--and exercise--to surviving the hump month.

What Chocolate Rx to Use:  Eat a 1-to 2-ounce piece of dark chocolate (48 percent cocoa or higher content infused with your favorite fruit or spice) and get a move on. To stay clear of black ice and falls, walking or running (include your pooch) on a treadmill can do the trick. Also, swimming in an indoor pool is another great way to get a workout and feel good, too. A bonus: The chocolate will lift your mind, body, and spirit providing extra energy to go do it.

Why You'll Like It: Both exercise and quality chocolate boost feel-good endorphins (and other good for you chocolate compounds in your body, as noted in The Healing Powers of Chocolate and reprinted by the Chef Shop), so what isn't to like? No matter what the weather is like outside, you'll feel better inside or outside after you get your choco-cize fix.
[Excerpt from The Healing Powers of Chocolate published by Kensington. This book is part of the Healing Powers series, has been translated in several languages, featured by NewsMax, msn health and fitness, and purchased by book clubs including One Spirit and Good Cook.] Note: The Healing Powers of Coffee is available for pre-order and advance copies due out in the spring.

Chocolate Power, Timeless Book Sweetens World

By Cal Orey,

The Writing Gourmet

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One year ago, my fave book The Healing Powers of Chocolate made its debut in the world--just in the nick of time for Valentine's Day and American Heart Health Month. But chocolate power is not just for February, it's a superfood that's still touted for its healing merits year-round...

The Healing Powers of Chocolate (Kensington, 2010) has been recognized by a wide variety of media, including prestigious book clubs (such as The Good Cook Book Club and One Spirit Book Club), magazines, newspapers, and I've chatted chocolate on many national talk shows. What's more, the good for you food has proven to keep its place in the health world. In other words, chocolate--especially the dark stuff with its feel-good-compounds is as good for you today as it was last year this time.

Drawing on the latest scientific research as well as interviews with medical doctors and chocolatiers, my book reveals how to live longer and healthier while indulging in one of nature's most decadent and versatile foods. I explored real chocolate (infused with fruits, herbs, and spices). I included heart-healthy recipes created by pro-chefs, plus home cures that combat everything from seasonal affective disorder to stress. I also share rejuvenating beauty and anti-aging spa treatments--all made with antioxidant-rich chocolate!

Since one year ago, this unique chocolate book was chosen as Complete Woman Magazine's Editor's Fave pick; touted in the new Elegant Living Magazine; praised in Energy Times Magazine and msn health and fitness, talked about on a number of radio stations, including What's Cookin', Tom Roten, KSFO, and Canada's X-Zone. What's more, the one-of-a-kind chocolate book with a long shelf life has been picked up for translation rights by three publishers in Brazil, Czech, and Saudia Arabia.

The bottom line: The HEALING POWERS series (The Healing Powers of Honey will be released October, 2011) sweetens up the world with The Healing Powers of Chocolate, much like its sister books The Healing Powers of Vinegar and The Healing Powers of Olive Oil. As we edge closer to romantic Valentine's Day and Heart Health Month (chocolate is a must-have for both events), a copy of The Healing Powers of Chocolate--or the trilogy--may sweeten up your world, too.