Don’t tell me that you haven’t sat next to, or even know that person who looks like Mr  or Miss anorexia 2003, despite shoveling food between their lips as if it’s going out of fashion.  Are they the genetically flawed humans, or is it those who weigh heavier on the scales of life that have the problem?

 ‘If it feels good, do it!’  How many times have you done it, whatever it is, just because it felt good, even though you knew there was a price to pay?  Every single day, probably because it’s the way we humans are.  The good news is that you may actually be doing yourself a lot of good, sometimes, without knowing it.  Perhaps you needn’t feel so guilty, after all.

‘Hedonic Phsychology’ – the study of pleasure – is a prime part of this research, and there is a growing, international organisation of scientists and doctors – Association for Research Into the Science of Enjoyment   (ARISE) – committed to the theory that a bit of what we fancy actually DOES do us some good.

For instance, you may feel wicked about it, but you like chocolate now and again.  Go ahead.  Even the smell of it can have the chemical effect of raising your levels of Immunoglobulin A in the immune system, and this helps protect against respiratory problems.

The Cocoa bean, native to Latin America – which is the most important ingredient of chocolate – was known and used by the Aztecs to treat depression and low sex-drive!

Casanova is reputed to have drunk cocoa as his bedtime drink, perhaps because the cocoa contains traces of  pheylethylamine (a natural amphetamine released during lovemaking) and theobromine – a stimulant!

Maybe, if you worry about weight and diet, you’d be better off teaching yourself to take pleasure from fruit, or exercise, but the key to a healthier you is simply not to ignore the pleasure principle.  There is a private organisation in Oxford, UK – called the Happiness Project – which advises companies like British Telecomm on ways to make staff happier and more productive.

Founded by Robert Holden several years ago, they have found that happy people accept themselves, and enjoy life more.  This means simply accepting yourself as you are, and being positive about changes you feel you need to make.  It isn’t just food and drink that can make you happy, though.  Flirting with the opposite sex is also very good for you!