We’re going to pretend you need a reason to eat more chocolate. If anyone ever tells you that chocolate is in any way bad for your health, your figure or your skin, you just pull out this article and wave it in their face like it’s a political manifesto.

There’s a little something we should clear up before we get to the gist of it though. When we say chocolate, we mean real chocolate. We mean dark chocolate - and the darker, the better. Unfortunately, most chocolate bars and the vast majority of store-bought stuff that claims to be chocolate are indeed bad for you. Tremendously bad. In fact, almost everything in those chocolate bars is bad - except for the chocolate.

That being said, here’s what chocolate can do for you.

Improved metabolism and circulation equals weight loss

“No thanks, I’m trying to lose weight,” is the last thing you should be saying when someone offers you chocolate. Dark chocolate is choc(k) full of flavonoids and healthy nutrients, all of which help boost metabolism and prevent heart disease. The recommended daily dose of the stuff is about 2 oz. a day, but you can feel free to have more, as long as it’s the real stuff you’re treating yourself to. Look for low-sugar or sugar-free chocolate with at least 60% cocoa mass, and minus any milk and other additions.

Mood swings? Eighty-six them with chocolate.

Chocolate is a mood-altering substance - and it’s completely legal and healthy! If we break it down into scientific terms, chocolate begins to sound like it came straight out of nature’s very own meth lab. Chocolate contains a compound known as phenylethylamine. Before you try saying that fast three times, let us explain what that does. PEA is a chemical that is also naturally produced by your body, in your brain, to be more specific, and during moments of happiness and euphoria. It’s the brain’s way of telling the rest of your body that you’re happy. So consuming dark chocolate can literally make you happy, which we’re sure you’ve noticed before.

More recent findings regarding the chemical composition of chocolate have also found that it contains something similar to THC, the active component in marijuana. This thing that’s not THC but is similar to it is a neurotransmitter called anandamide. While anandamide is nothing like THC in the sense that it won’t make you high and will still allow you to operate heavy machinery, it does relax the brain and body and is highly efficient in removing feelings of anxiety. Did we mention it’s also legal, natural, and entirely healthy? Frankly, we’re not seeing a downside to any of this.

Eat smart, get smart.

Chocolate makes you smarter. There are no ifs, ands or buts about this claim either. Because it improves circulation, dark chocolate also improves blood-flow to the brain. As if making you instantly smarter wasn’t enough, cocoa also contains more antioxidants than other superfood known to man, including blueberries, pomegranates, acai, and spinach. Oxidants are what kill your cells and your brain over time. So chocolate with high quantities of cocoa reduces that ongoing risk and literally protects your brain from damage, improving your memory and focus along the way.

Knowing all that we know about chocolate now, there may be just one downside - good, healthy, dark chocolate can be on the pricey side. But with all of the benefits it brings and the taste alone make it well worth it. Treat yourself to some real dark chocolate or cocoa powder today. And then every day after that, especially if you’re planning on hitting the gym.