Emotions

Anyone who’s ever gotten a whiff of fresh raspberries and been immediately transported back to one’s childhood backyard, happily pulling the berries off a bush, knows that food can indeed trigger memories and emotions and other subjective connotations.

Certain holidays are inextricably linked with certain foods, such as Thanksgiving with turkey, Christmas with eggnog, and Valentine’s Day with chocolates. Chocolate is one of several foods ranging from champagne to oysters which have a long history as suspected aphrodiasiacs, credited with stimulating romantic feelings. The question of whether there is an actual, physical effect on the body that takes place upon consuming such foods, or whether the power of suggestion is enough to stimulate such feelings, is moot.