The whole world celebrated World Chocolate Day two days ago, and while everybody was having their fill with choco goodies in whatever form – bars, cakes, ice cream, drinks of all sorts, and many others – some people have resorted to Snorting it. That’s right – welcome to the age where people like having some chocolate powder up their nostrils.
For $24.99 you can get a 10-serving tin of Coco Loko, a cacao-based powder (along with gingko biloba, taurine, and guarana, which are common in energy drinks) that you can snort.
It’s made by an Orlando-based company called Legal Lean, and its website says Coco Loko provides a drug-free way to get that rush of energy, as cocaine would.
Go loco with cocoa
The source of this weird trend is Nick Anderson, founder of CEO of Legal Lean. In an interview with Washington Post, Anderson said he heard of the chocolate-snuffing trend in Europe, which got him curious to the point of whipping his own version. He ended up combining cacao with ingredients found in most energy drinks, shelling out $10,000 in the process.
The official website for Legal Lean says its chocolate powder causes a rush of endorphins and the mood-regulating hormone serotonin, which in effect will allow users to have an insane amount of energy.
On the other hand, the website also claims Coco Loko allows for a more focused you, and that it causes your brain to be more attentive to accomplish tasks easier.
A generation of choco-shooters
The Coco Loko powder looks quite the same as with most chocolate mixes, but as opposed to most chocolate-based products, it’s no way FDA approved. Chocolates, in the right amounts, could prevent the clotting of blood, which in turn will reduce the risk of developing any heart diseases. The antioxidants found in it also help in increasing the flexibility of the arteries and veins. The same could not be said in snorting chocolate, though.
The effects of snorting to one’s health are yet to be laid out, but merely hearing of the activity is already a cause for concern.
In fact, The Post interviewed Dr. Andrew Lane, director of the Johns Hopkins Sinus Center, of the matter, and he said that the most obvious drawback to snuffing chocolate is that it could mix with one’s mucus and block the sinuses.
The trend isn’t exactly new, and like its creator said, it’s been around in Europe for years now. Medical Daily also reported that a rave event in Berlin called Lucid offers raw cacao and other “high vibe medicines” instead of alcohol. Clubbers say chocolate can apparently help “amplify” their experience, rather than “dim” it, unlike other drugs. “It's like a smooth, sensual hug in a cup,” says Lucid organizer Ruby May.
Would you snort chocolate?