DECHOX: surviving a month without chocolate

How did Simon Ward fare without chocolate in March?

During February, I spotted the British Heart Foundation’s DECHOX campaign, which sought volunteers willing to go without chocolate for the whole of March in return for donations.

Slightly worried by my own chocolate consumption, I signed up and thought nothing more of it until the beginning of March. When 1st March rolled around, I stocked up on cashew nuts and raisins in an attempt to fight off any mid-afternoon cravings.

And the first couple of weeks were absolutely fine. In fact, the biggest shock of that period was how much chocolate we had lying around at home, most of which had been given to our children at various points from Christmas onwards.

I also noticed how friends and family members also had cupboard shelves groaning with the stuff. But with figures from data analysts Mintel suggesting eight million of us eat chocolate once a day it’s not surprising.

And when you walk around supermarkets what’s almost always discounted at the end of aisles? Multipacks and blocks of chocolate.

Chocolate may be moving away from the till area in the likes of Aldi and Tesco but it’s still a strong temptation for most when in need of a quick snack fix.

The storm then the calm

Indeed, by mid-March I had a few days of struggling with not being able to reach for a chocolate bar during the mid-afternoon lull. And then there was missing out on the Lovefood Easter egg taste tests...

But my cravings gradually faded away so by the end of the month I wasn’t feeling like I missed anything.

So there was definitely a positive effect for me, beyond just the charity campaign. The challenge is now to maintain this and not go back to bad old ways.

With Easter round the corner, I might start by giving some of that mountain of chocolate at home away…

Did you DECHOX in March? Do you restrict the amount of chocolate you eat? Let us have your chocolate confessions in the Comments below.

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