Chocolate

A science experiment by Yura Campbell

Experimental Question:

“What is the effect of chocolate on someone’s mood?”

Materials:

• Ten test subjects (5 boys and girls)

• Candy bars (½ of a king-sized 3 Musketeers chocolate bar for each test subject)

• Optional: A timer to keep track of time

Variables Kept the Same:

• Amount of chocolate eaten by each person (½ of a candy bar)

• Time of day chocolate is eaten (after a sugar-free breakfast, before school)

Changed Variable:

• The intake of sugar (the test subjects were asked their moods before, immediately after, ten minutes after, and one hour after eating ½ of the candy bar)

Measured Variable:

• The mood of the test subjects (the test subjects were asked their moods on a 1-10 scale, 1 being mellow emotions, and 10 being extreme)

10

1

Mellow

At least one distinct mood

Extreme5

Prediction:

I predict that before eating the chocolate, the test subjects will have mellow moods. After eating the chocolate, I predict that their immediate mood will be higher on the scale in happiness. This is because whenever my friends eat large amounts of sugar or chocolate, they tend to get sugar high. (None of my friends get sad or mad by eating sugar, so I think that any reaction will be a happy one).

Ten minutes after eating the chocolate, I think that the test subjects will be calmer, but not that much. I think this because in my experience, sugar highs do not last very long. Finally, after an hour, I predict that the test subjects will have mellow moods, around the same moods that they had in the beginning, before eating the chocolate. I think that this will happen because our body will probably store the sugar from the chocolate in our body, so that the test subjects will feel normal.

Procedure:

1. Ask the moods of the test subjects.2. Give each test subject ½ of a king-

sized 3 Musketeers candy bar.3. Ask their moods immediately after

they are finished eating.4. Ten minutes later, ask their moods

again.5. An hour after eating the chocolate, ask

their moods a final time.6. Find the average scores and compare

results.

Results:Name Before

EatingImmediately After Eating

Ten Minutes After Eating

One Hour After Eating

Fiona 2 3 4 3

Helen 4 6 5 4

Raven 2 5 9.5 4

Kelsey 5 9 8 3

Mackenzie

7.5 8 9.5 6

Max 3 8 10 8

Theo 2 5 7 2.5

Hank 3 7 6 5

Henry S. 3 6 5 7

Henry A. 6 8 7 7

Averages: 3.75 6.5 7.1 4.95

Conclusion:

My prediction was right in that all of the test subjects’ moods were lower before they ate the candy bars than after. The average mood for the test subjects on the mood scale of 1-10 was 3.75 before they ate the candy bars. That is less than the average mood of the test subjects immediately after eating the chocolate, which was 6.5. This is because chocolate releases endorphins in your brain. Endorphins are a chemical that lessen pain and stress. But if you are not in pain or stressed out, you will become happier. This is why the test subjects were happier after eating the chocolate than before.

Ten minutes after eating the candy bars, they felt slightly happier, unlike my prediction that the sugar would wear off after that period of time. The average overall for their moods ten minutes after eating the chocolate was 7.1.This is probably because it take a while for all of the endorphins to be released.

Finally, an hour after eating the chocolate, the test subjects’ moods dropped to an average of 4.95. This shows that eating chocolate makes you overall happier, because before eating the chocolate, the average mood was 3.75, but an hour later the average was 4.95.

In conclusion, chocolate is a food that can make you happier, which is most likely why it is regarded as a comfort food. It may help to eat chocolate when you are in pain, stressed, or depressed.

(Thanks for watching!)-Yura