It’s well known that chocolate is made of Theobroma cacao seeds, but the news that it contains parts of bugs may seriously confuse you and probably even make you cut down your chocolate consumption for the next few weeks.
If you had a golden ticket to anyone but Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory, you would discover that the average chocolate bar contains at least eight insect pieces.
But the worst is not that there are insects in your sweet food. The people who are allergic to chocolate aren’t reacting to the cocoa in it. They are simply triggered by the cockroaches and other bugs that have invaded their chocolate.
We won’t challenge you to read ahead while eating a chocolate bar, but after you learn all the facts, you might find it challenging.
Chocolate Allergies Linked to Cockroach Parts
The people allergic to chocolate might be shocked to learn that their allergies are not linked to the cocoa bean – they are allergic to nextnationalday cockroaches.
According to ABC News, in 100 grams of chocolate, about 60 insect parts could be found, but this is safe for consumption.
Most foods have natural contaminants, but there are levels the FDA deems safe,” says allergist Dr Morton M. Teich.
“There can be no more than 60 insect pieces per 100 grams of chocolate, according to the FDA.”
Trace amounts of insect parts that are ground into food can affect people with allergies and asthma. Symptoms of side effects may include migraines, cramps, hives, or itching.
Cockroach allergies can be treated with allergy shots containing small amounts of the insect and avoiding chocolate.
Since 1959, allergists have been testing patients for cockroach skin allergies. “Cockroaches are now being examined by allergists because of their potential to trigger asthma symptoms,” says Teich. “The patients we’ve tested for cockroaches really react to nationaldaytime them.”
Teich says most of his patients are shocked by this information and swear off chocolate after discovering its contaminants. The majority say they can’t eat that anymore!” Teich points out that switching brands won’t protect you from cockroaches since they are a natural part of cocoa beans.
According to him, preventing insects from getting into your food is almost impossible.
“You probably would have to stop eating completely.”
To produce foods without insects, producers would have to use more pesticides, which Teich believes are more harmful than eating insects.
The more expensive chocolate brands allegedly take additional precautions to separate insects from the beans, but no evidence supports that claim.
Guess we’ll just have to take their word for it.
A list of other tasty bug-containing foods and drinks
- Coffee beans – Did you know that even if you think your beloved cup of coffee is free from any insect infestation, you may be surprised to learn that up to 10% of the beans in your coffee pack are allowed to be insect-infested? Shockingly, this means you could consume up to 120 tiny bug particles in your cup of coffee without even realising it.
- Fruit juices – While enjoying a refreshing glass of healthy juice can make you feel good about indulging in a healthy treat, learning that a packaged juice might contain fly eggs could make you react quite differently. Packaged juices can contain as many as 5 fly eggs in every 250 ml.
- Peanut butter – If you’re a fan of protein-packed peanut butter, you may be surprised to learn that it can contain up to 30 insect fragments per 100 grams. Considering how delicious it tastes, it’s worth considering what exactly gives it such a delicious flavour – and we’re pretty sure it’s enough to make anyone feel uneasy.
Okay, but how do insects infest our food?
Despite our best efforts to carefully select our food, it’s surprising how many of our favourite processed foods are actually filled with insect fragments and other unwanted bits.
Eating healthy foods is important, so why is then this happening? This unfortunate reality is partly due to the massive scale of production units and the prevalence of mechanical processing techniques.
Factors like these make it nearly impossible to watch every single production unit. Despite efforts to implement safety measures, some insects and bugs still find their way into our food.
Did you know that if you see cockroaches running around in your home, there are probably at least 800 hiding inside? So if you have a cockroach allergy, you must take steps to eliminate them immediately. Everyone knows that cockroaches are very resilient pests.
While it may be impossible to completely control the bug and cockroach contamination in food factories due to the massive scale of production units and mechanical processing techniques, we can take steps to control roach infestations in our homes.
Resorting to pest and cockroach control professionals can help us eliminate any potential threats and safeguard our living spaces from the harmful effects of roaches.
Why are bug bits and insects in food considered safe and approved by the FDA?
It may come as a surprise, but we unintentionally consume approximately 140,000 insect fragments each year on average.
Even more shocking is the fact that the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) permits a certain level of insect infestation in our food, considering it to be within acceptable legal limits. That’s why it’s so important to read the label.
In several countries, bugs and insects are considered a delicacy and an essential part of their culinary culture.
In fact, various insects are legal to consume and are enjoyed as a staple food.
While the mere thought of eating insects may seem perplexing to some, it’s worth noting that the reason why insect fragments are allowed in minimal quantities in many of our processed foods is that they are an excellent source of proteins, healthy fats, calcium, and iron, while being low in calories.
However, adding fly eggs and other creepy crawlies to the extent of 70 fragments in food can be incredibly off-putting and bizarre.
Strangely, it still remains legal and safe for consumption, and when you factor in climate change, you might start wondering what big factories are all really about.
Final Thoughts
Well, with these bizarre facts about chocolate, we leave you to decide what to put in your body.
However, we had to warn you because big companies likely wouldn’t find questions like that are what’s good for business.