Sweet babies:: chocolate consumption during pregnancy and infant temperament at six months

Background: Chocolate contains several biologically active components potentially having behavioral and psychological consequences. Aims: We tested whether chocolate consumption and stress experiences during pregnancy predict mother-rated infant temperament at 6 months. Design and subjects: Prenatal frequency of chocolate consumption and intensity of psychological stress experience of the mothers, and temperament characteristics of the infants 6 months postpartum were evaluated in 305 consecutive, healthy mother-infant dyads. Results: Mothers who reported daily consumption of chocolate rated more positively the temperament of their infants at 6 months. Maternal prenatal stress predicted more negatively tuned ratings of the infant temperament, particularly among those who reported never/seldom chocolate consumption. However, this effect was not observed among the mothers reporting weekly or daily chocolate consumption. Conclusions: In addition to producing subjective feelings of psychological well being, chocolate may have effects at multiple environmental and psychological levels. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.