If you are a chocolate lover, then you are not alone. According to research, Americans, on average, eat approximately 9.5 pounds of chocolate per year, coming in 9th place for the world’s top 10 chocolate consumers. If you think that’s a lot though, take a look at Switzerland—on average each person there enjoys approximately 19.8 pounds of chocolate annually. Talk about a sweet tooth!

Even though chocolate is delicious, some variations of it may have negative effects on our health—as it turns out, not all chocolate is created equal. For example, dark chocolate may have health benefits when enjoyed in moderation, but other types, such as white and milk chocolate, can be packed with fat and added sugar.

“To get the maximum health benefits from cacao, you want to choose a dark chocolate that is 70% or higher,” explains Danielle McAvoy, MSPH, RD, and Registered Dietitian with Strong Home Gym. “The percentage of cacao also tells you the percentage of sugar,” says McAvoy. For example, if a chocolate is labeled as “50%” that means it is made of 50% cacao and 50% sugar and dairy.

But even healthy dark chocolate can be over-consumed. If you feel like your chocolate habits are negatively impacting your health, cutting it out could help. Cutting out chocolate may feel difficult at first, but it can work wonders for both your mind and body. From getting a better night’s rest to experiencing fewer mood swings, here are some of the effects of giving up chocolate for 30 days.

While you’re making healthier choices, check out Eating Habits to Lose Abdominal Fat As You Age, Say Dietitians.

When we cut out chocolate we are also cutting out sugar, which can then have a balancing effect on our moods.

“When you eliminate sugar from your diet, you’re getting rid of one of the main causes of mood swings and irritability,” explains Jay Cowin, NNCP, RNT, RNC, CHN, CSNA, Registered Nutritionist and Director of Formulations at ASYSTEM. Cowin explains that sugar is a toxin that can deplete energy while also wreaking havoc on blood sugar levels. “[This] can lead to mood swings, cravings, and other unhealthy behaviors,” he says.

Having trouble reaching your weight loss goals? Eliminating chocolate from your diet, even if it’s just for a month, can help cut back on calories and sugar which can then lead to weight loss.6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

“Because added sugars are often hidden in foods and drinks, and more especially in chocolate, it can be tough to track just how much sugar you’re eating each day,” says Cowin, “cutting back on added sugars can help you lose weight and improve your overall health.”

RELATED: The Unhealthiest Foods Making Your Sugar Cravings Worse

According to research, almost one-third of Americans may experience acid reflux weekly. When we think of heartburn or acid reflux, images of tomato sauce, alcohol, and fried foods may come to mind, but did you know that chocolate is also a culprit? “Chocolate is an acidic food and can cause or worsen symptoms of heartburn or acid reflux,” shares McAvoy, “The sweeter the chocolate, the more triggering it can be.”

If you indulge in chocolate later in the day you may find that going to sleep at night may be a struggle. This is because chocolate contains caffeine and can keep you up. McAvoy points out that caffeine is okay in moderation, but if you are someone who is guzzling down coffee in the morning, having chocolate in the afternoon or evening may disrupt your sleep. “Caffeine can also contribute to anxiety, so reducing the amount you consume can help you feel more relaxed,” McAvoy adds.

RELATED: Popular Drinks With More Caffeine Than Coffee, Says Science

By avoiding chocolate for a month you may develop increased emotional awareness which can help improve mindful eating. “I know firsthand that eating chocolate is an easy way to pacify uncomfortable emotions,” says Sylvia Gonsahn-Bollie, M.D., dual-board certified obesity & metabolic health physician, bestselling author, personalized lifestyle coach, and CEO of EmbraceYOU Weight & Wellness. “When I gave up chocolate for a month I was forced to “feel my feelings,” she adds, “This emotional awareness helped improve my mindful eating.”

Dr. Bollie also said that she felt “a greater connection and clarity” when she wasn’t using food to “soothe” her feelings. “This is a common pattern I see with other emotional eaters that I work with on their weight and wellness journey,” she points out.

RELATED: 5 Ways to Quit Emotional Eating for Good

Just a single Hershey’s Milk Chocolate bar contains 24 grams of sugar. Enjoy one of these a couple of times per week and that’s nearly 200 grams of added sugar, just from chocolate, each month. According to a 2018 research study, it was found that diets that are high in sugar can put you at a greater risk of developing non-fatty liver disease. By decreasing your chocolate intake you can help lower your risk of this illness while also lessening your risk of both diabetes and obesity along the way.

In a 2014 study by JAMA Internal Medicine, it was found that there was a direct correlation between higher added sugar intake and increased risk for CVD (cardiovascular disease) mortality. By switching out your chocolate habit for healthier alternatives, such as fruits and nuts, the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease may be lessened.

Replace your chocolate habit with these 22 Meals to Melt Belly Fat in 2022.

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We start every year with big goals and a desire to accomplish more than any previous year. We spend each day telling ourselves that tomorrow will be the day we’re going to start living life the way we’d like to live it. There’s always an inherent desire for more on the horizon but not acted upon.

We work hard and hit roadblocks. We take action and experience a setback. Things don’t work out as planned and derail us from our desired course. We come to the end of too many years not having lived the way we knew was possible. 

You can live an incredible life, accomplish your goals, and feel good about the way you spend each day. It’s going to take consistently putting in the work to build healthy habits that optimize you as a leader. No person is guaranteed tomorrow, and it’s time to stop living that way. 

If this will be the period in your life in which you accomplish your goals, it’s going to take some essential mindset shifts. Optimized leaders achieve goals with the energy, motivation, and hunger to accomplish more than they thought possible. 

Here are four mindset shifts that help you optimize yourself and accomplish your growth-focused goals. Understand these four principles.

1. My goals are possible if I’m willing to do hard things. 

Social media makes it seem glamorous to work on your goals. What’s not often shown when somebody posts a win is the hard things they chose to do to get that win. Make no mistake; it’s hard work to live a life of growth. You’re going to have to do hard things to get there.

Your dream life is worthy of the effort, and you need to understand that you can do hard things. One mindset shift that helps you optimize your actions is committing to doing the hard things instead of practicing avoidance.

When the going gets tough, avoidance becomes our default reaction. Avoiding hard things catches up to you at some point. Make the mindset shift that you’re going to take on hard things and resist the temptation to use avoidance as a strategy.

Whatever you’re facing or will face on the journey to become the best version of yourself will not go away just because you try to avoid it. Determine that you will be the type of leader that embraces the work and is not afraid of doing the hard things. 

2. It’s my daily choices that lead to long-term accomplishments. 

When we think of change, we’re thinking about the big picture and what it will be like once we get there. The big picture and accomplishment come from the daily choices that you make. Your choices build your habits, and that affects how successful you’ll become.

One essential mindset shift is understanding the importance of your daily choices. You make a shift by becoming intentional about your planning and execution each day. You set boundaries and evaluate what needs to go on your daily schedule based on your long-term goals.

You stop thinking about the long-term picture and view this as a journey of where you’re going. Your goal then becomes the daily compounding of the work you’re doing. You’re playing the long game, and you’re committed to doing the hard things that get you to that vision of success. 

Focus on planning your day the night before and be intentional about what goes on your plan. Focus on living each day fully and be present in your life. Make daily choices that compound and get you closer to your goals. 

“The mind is everything. What you think, you become.” – Buddha

3. I deserve every good thing that comes from consistency. 

Something interesting happens when we accomplish our goals and experience the benefits of that accomplishment. The fear of success has kept more than a few people from going after their dream life. One other limiting belief is not feeling worthy of that dream life.

Worthiness and feeling as if you deserve success are a critical mindset shift that needs to happen. If you’re going to do the work to optimize yourself, you have to believe you deserve the results of that work. You have to shift your mind and tell yourself you are worthy of good things.

One of the best ways to optimize your mind is to act like you’ve been there before. You are worthy, and you will do whatever it takes to accomplish your goals. You deserve nothing but good things; believe it and then do something about it.

4. I’m going to focus on what I want — not what I don’t have. 

One thing that’s understood but not practiced is this idea of focus and attention. You attract what you focus on, and you should be focusing on what you want.

Things don’t often work out as planned, and that tends to draw our focus. We focus on what we don’t have instead of focusing on what we want — it creates a bad attitude. There will always be things you don’t have or that don’t work out, but an optimized mindset understands those are all lessons and opportunities.

Your focus should be on where you’re going and what you have. As you focus on what you do have, it creates an attitude of gratitude, attracting more good things into your life. It also keeps your mind sharp because gratitude helps you stay energized.

One mindset shift that helps optimization is focusing on what you have instead of what you don’t have. The goal is to look forward and keep taking steps towards your goals. 

Happiness comes when we create freedom in our life. Growth means accomplishment and making progress towards that life of freedom. Shift your mindset to live a happy life, optimize yourself, and accomplish every one of your goals.

It’s a great time to push towards your vision of success and accomplishment. It starts with consistency and building healthy habits. Make these for mindset shifts and do the work to become the best version of yourself. Make it happen.

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