Like something the cartoon character Cathy might dream up when she’s despairing over trying on bikinis, a new study has found a link between frequent chocolate consumption and weight loss. This is akin to someone announcing that you will get paid to sleep. Life changing.

Before we get all ecstatic over the gist of the research, it’s important to note that the findings in the study, which was funded by the National Institutes of Health, don’t tell people to go off and gorge on a mountain of candy bars or stick their faces in a fountain of liquid chocolate. Rather, reports the Wall Street Journal, it says that those who eat chocolate more frequently tend to be thinner than those who consume it less often.

Researchers spoke to around 1,000 adults about how often they ate the treat, and found that those who ate chocolate more often didn’t necessarily eat fewer calories than others, or even exercise more. They often ingested more calories than those who avoided chocolate.

However, researchers point out that it’s not about eating chocolate as a way to lose weight. The study shows a possible link between how many times chocolate is eaten in a week, rather than how much overall, and weight. Those who ate a small amount five days a week had a lower BMI than those who didn’t, even if they consumed more total calories and didn’t exercise more.

“Our findings appear to add to a body of information suggesting that the composition of calories, not just the number of them, matters for determining their ultimate impact on weight,” say the study’s lead researcher, Dr. Beatrice Golomb.

In order to really find out if eating chocolate has a positive impact on weight, Dr. Golomb says they’d have to conduct a study comparing chocolate eaters to non-chocolate eaters.

I volunteer as tribute! Err, participant.

A Chocolate a Day to Get Slimmer? [Wall Street Journal]

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