>>12482088The pharmacology of cacao is relatively complex, and it depends greatly on the form you consumed, what you consume it with, and your individual particularities.
I think the primary mechanism is dilation of blood vessels, penylethylamine induced dumping of dopamine stores, and nutrients which spur increased serotonin and dopamine synthesis (and norepi downstream). There are several angles.
Cacao doesn't actually contain much, if any caffeine. Its primary methylxanthines are theobromine and theophylline. iirc it takes ~5 seconds for the intra and extracllular concentration of methylxanthines to become equal. Inside the cell caffeine, theobromine, etc causes the smooth endoplasmic reticulum to release its Ca2+ stores (and the other polyphenols also do this via ryanodine receptors). One of the short term effects is increased NO synthesis, and in turn increased cGMP etc, which is connected to nrf2 (which is conected to BDNF). Long term, NO overwhelms these systems and start going to down the NO + superoxide pathway, yielding peroxynitrite, H2O2, and hydroxyl radical. So its beneficial effects are redox mediated. The polyphenols also accumulate in, modulate, and restructure the hippocampus.
Otherwise, there is anandamide. It's unclear how bioavailable this actually is. There are (psychoactive) mold toxins and consensation byproducts like salsolinol. Despite lowering cortisol levels and preventing epinephrine release, it actually has a strong suppressive effect on the vagus nerve (parasympathetic). It contains compounds which strongly inhibit digestive enzymes dealing with starches and fats. Having these incompletely digested components emptied in the gut modifies gut flora behavior, this is another possible mechanism. Cacao is very high in magnesium.
I discovered this the same way you did. The effects of all the different forms of cacao vary. Chocolate liquor, cocoa butter or the cocoa mass alone. Raw, roasted, whole beans, nibs, etc.
