Can Dark Chocolate Alleviate Anxiety, Depressive And Stress Symptoms Among Trainee Nurses? A Parallel, Open-Label Study
ASEAN Journal of Psychiatry
;
: 1-13, 2011.
Article
in English
| WPRIM
| ID: wpr-625602
ABSTRACT
Objective:
This interventional study was aimed to investigate the effects of dark chocolate consumption on anxiety, depression, and stress (ADS) among trainee nurses.Methods:
A parallel and open-label experimental study was conducted. Of the 128 nurses enrolled, only 47 participated in the intervention study (mean age = 20.32 years; ranging from 19 to 22 years old). They were randomly assigned to an intervention group (IG, n = 25) or a control group (CG, n = 22). The IG consumed dark chocolate and CG ingested mineral water for 3 consecutive days. The validated Malay Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) were utilised for measuring ADS levels. Data were analysed descriptively and score comparisons were conducted using non-parametric tests.Results:
No significant differences between IG and CG in ADS scores were detected at baseline (all p > 0.05). At post-consumption, ADS score were significantly reduced in IG (all p < 0.01) compared with CG (all p < 0.05). Larger effect sizes among these respondents had also revealed that there were mood-elevating effects of dark chocolate consumption.Conclusion:
This study has discovered that 3-day consumption of dark chocolate may alleviate ADS status among trainee nurses suggesting that dark chocolate may have a more prominent role in improving emotional and mood generally. Further investigations are however warranted to confirm this finding.
Full text:
Available
Index:
WPRIM (Western Pacific)
Type of study:
Diagnostic study
Language:
English
Journal:
ASEAN Journal of Psychiatry
Year:
2011
Type:
Article
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