Before you go shopping, enjoy a handful of M&Ms, a few Hershey’s kisses or a couple of pieces of your favorite chocolate bar. Turns out, chocolate can help prevent you from falling for snazzy marketing displays or sales that tempt you to purchase items you don’t need, a new University of Utah study shows. Credit goes to the amino acid tryptophan that’s in the sweet treat—it helps your body make serotonin, a brain chemical that curbs impulsive spending, the researchers say.
Tip: On a diet? Other on-the-go foods that contain tryptophan include yogurt, low-fat string cheese, turkey jerky, sunflower seeds and bananas.
[photo: Neza]
