Who hasn't been heartened — literally — with the news from scientists that chocolate is more than just a treat?

New studies show that chocolate and its key ingredient, cocoa, have some major health benefits. In its purest form, chocolate can lower blood pressure, help muscles recover from exercise, improve skin, provide antioxidants and even give us a thrill that rivals a passionate kiss.

However, Health magazine senior food and nutrition editor Frances Largeman-Roth warns that this isn't license to binge.

On "The Saturday Early Show," Largeman-Roth points out that the average bar of dark chocolate — the kind that has the most health benefits — has around 400 calories … "and if the bar has any nuts or caramel in it, it'll cost you more" calorie-wise, she adds.

Her advice: "The best thing to do is savor a small piece of really good chocolate."

If you're able to restrict yourself to a small daily dose, you'll experience some heart-healthy benefits.

"Cocoa improves blood flow, makes blood platelets less sticky — which helps prevent clotting — and also has a positive effect on bad cholesterol. This is due to the antioxidant effect of cocoa, which helps reduce inflammation, which we now understand to be the root of many diseases," she tells CBS News.

Another recent eye-opening study, this one by German researchers, showed that women who drank a half-cup of enriched cocoa every day for three months developed skin that was smoother and had more moisture. Furthermore, the women's skin was less scaly and red after it was exposed to ultraviolet light.

"It is surprising, especially after all those stories about chocolate making you break out," says Largeman-Roth. "It turns out that the flavonoids in chocolate help protect the skin and increase blood flow, which makes it look more refreshed and smooth."

Most recently, British researchers reporting finding that people get more of a buzz from eating chocolate than from a passionate kiss.

"The researchers put electrodes on young couples in their 20s and tested their heart rate and brain activity while eating dark chocolate and then while kissing their sweeties," says Largeman-Roth.

"Surprisingly, heart rate and brain activity both increased far more with the chocolate than with the kissing. And actually, all areas of the brain were stimulated when the chocolate melted on their tongues. Kissing did increase the heart rate, but not for as long."

One word of caution: white chocolate, though delicious, doesn't pack any kind of healthy punch because it doesn't have any cocoa solids, the ingredient that makes dark chocolate so magical.

And some studies were based on having participants eating three or more ounces a day, a heavy caloric load. "But the good news," says Largeman-Roth, "is that researchers say you don't need to eat that much to have an effect — even a bit of chocolate a day can do some good."

A couple had been debating buying a vehicle for weeks. He wanted a truck. She wanted a fast little sports-like car so she could zip through traffic around town. He would probably have settled on any beat up old truck, but everything she seemed to like was way out of their price range.

"Look!" she said, "I want something that goes from 0 to 200 in just a few seconds. Nothing else will do and my birthday is coming up you better surprise me!"

He did just that. For her birthday, he bought her a brand new bathroom scale.

Nobody has seen or heard of him since.

RIYADH (Reuters) - A Saudi man lost a bit of his nose in a joint assault by his two wives after he jokingly threatened to marry a third woman.

"I swore that I would do it because ... they were impolite and that's when I came under an even bigger attack," Ibn Salem told Shams newspaper after having seven stitches inserted.

"I never realized they would get so worked up. But the only way to restore my dignity is really to take a third wife.

"I don't know what I'm going to lose next if I do that."

Islamic law allows men to take up to four wives and polygamy is not unusual in the conservative kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of Islam.

1. According to the Kinsey Institute, the biggest erect penis on record measures 13 inches. The smallest tops off at 1 3/4 inches.

2. The most common fantasy is oral sex.
3. 8% of us have regular anal sex.
4. 60% of men and 54% of women have had a 1-night stand.
5. Women buy 4 out of every 10 condoms sold.
6. In 1609, a doctor named Wecker found a corpse in Bologna with two penises. Since then, there have been eighty documented cases of men similarly endowed.
7. Men say the average erect penis is 10″. Women say it’s 4″.
8. A female orgasm is a powerful painkiller (because of the release of endorphins), so headaches are in fact a bad excuse not to have sex.
9. 56% of men have had sex at work.
10. Among the Mangaians of Polynesia, 18-year-old couples make love
    an average of three times a night, every night, until their
    thirties, when the weekly average drops to a mere 14.
11. 1 in 3 of us have had an extramarital affair.
12. 62% think there is nothing wrong with affairs.
13. The maximum speed at which erotic sensations travel from skin to
    brain has been clocked at 156 miles per hour.
14. A honeymooning couple are suing Holiday Inn for ten thousand
    dollars, claiming their sex life is now dysfunction because an
    employee mistakenly walked in on them on their wedding night.
15. At least 500 Americans die each year from asphyxia in an attempt
    to lessen oxygen flow to the brain in order to induce a more
    powerful orgasm.
16. England’s King Edward VII, a man of considerable heft, had a
    special table built so that he could comfortably engage in
    sexual intercourse.
17. 29% of us are virgins when we marry.
18. The average sexual experience lasts about 39 minutes.
19. 58% like dirty talk during sex.
20. 22% rent porno flicks at least once.
21. Given today’s average frequency of sexual intercourse, it would
    take the typical American couple more than four years to try
    every one of the 529 positions described in the Kama Sutra.

Israeli police investigating why a car was blocking traffic in the fast lane of a major highway on Sunday found a couple inside having sex.

A police spokesman said the female driver and her male passenger gave in to their passions without pulling over to the side of the road, causing congestion and leaving other motorists having to swerve to dodge their stationary vehicle.

A patrolman gave the woman a ticket for holding up traffic.

Anti-whaling protesters displayed whale-shaped chocolates and activists sent Japan's Health Minister a giant chocolate urging him to "Be Our Valentine and Resign!" as the country's sweet-giving tradition took on a bitter tinge on Wednesday.

Greenpeace protesters brought their chocolate offerings along with a giant Valentine's card to the venue of an international conference in Tokyo at which Japan and like-minded countries hope to build momentum to re-introduce commercial whaling.

The protest drew a mixed reaction from passers-by.

Anti-whaling protesters displayed whale-shaped chocolates and activists sent Japan's Health Minister a giant chocolate urging him to "Be Our Valentine and Resign!" as the country's sweet-giving tradition took on a bitter tinge on Wednesday.

Greenpeace protesters brought their chocolate offerings along with a giant Valentine's card to the venue of an international conference in Tokyo at which Japan and like-minded countries hope to build momentum to re-introduce commercial whaling.

The protest drew a mixed reaction from passers-by.

Bus passengers in Sofia are being shown soft pron films on giant video screens at night.

During the day the plasma screens in the Bulgarian capital show bus times, but the night shift now has the pron films on view.

A spokesman for the station management said: “We wanted to give the passengers something to take their minds off the cold and to pass the time while waiting for a bus, and there are unlikely to be children around that time of night.”

Strong erotic photographs

Ask around and a majority of men will tell you that they love it when their wives or girlfriends wear sexy lingerie. Women who wear lingerie ‘feel’ more feminine and sexy. That can help them to ‘unleash’ passions they may have hidden from themselves, or been too afraid to show before. Men are ‘visual’ and ‘physical’ beings when it comes to sex. Men will create powerfully-stimulating images in their minds looking at a woman in sexy lingerie. His desire for you and the anticipation of a sexual encounter with you builds as he ‘touches’ the sensuous material of the lingerie. Women tend to desire an ‘emotional-connection’ and with their partner, in conjunction with the physical stimulation of sexual activity. Women want to know that their mate finds them desirable and sexy. Wearing sexy lingerie gives both of them the ‘sensory’ stimulation needed for a better sexual experience, and the deepening of their relationship. When a man sees the woman he loves wearing some very seductive lingerie, he can ‘visualize’ her apart from the other roles she plays in the workplace or as a wife and mother. He can feel confident that for this space-in-time, she is there just for him. She won’t be distracted by her everyday demands such as last minute assignments from the boss, fixing dinner, laundry, or “cranky” children. The sight of her in a beautiful, lacy bra and panties ‘heightens’ his anticipation of sharing this time with her. To him, sexy lingerie is like ‘unwrapping’ a Christmas present. He anticipates that once he has completely removed the delicious ‘wrapping’ from his woman- it will lead to explosively-satisfying sex for both him and her. What woman doesn’t want to have her man ‘salivating’ and ‘groaning’ with desire for her? What woman wouldn’t feel “special’ to see the gleam in his eyes, and the raising of the flag so to speak as he traces a finger slowly over the lacing of your bra or along the edges of your barely-there thong? What woman would pass up experiencing his ‘tenderness’ as he slowly removes the hosiery from your legs-one sensuous leg at a time? Knowing that you have ‘seductive powers over your man ‘heightens’ your own sexual experience. Why not let out the seductive-tigress within you tonight by wearing some sexy lingerie? Maybe you’ve never worn sexy lingerie before and are a little ‘hesitant’ about trying some out. Don’t be. Sexy lingerie comes in a variety of styles and fabrics. You can find lingerie styles that are downright daring- made with see-through and sexually-charged materials such as netting and vinyl. You can find equally sexy, yet less-daring lingerie in such sensuous materials as satin and lace. What’s important is to wear the sexy lingerie you feel most comfortable in. Your man will love whatever sexy lingerie you choose! Perhaps you’re not so confident about your ‘powers of seduction’ over your man and would like to “test-the-waters” wearing just a sexy lace bra or a pair of satiny-smooth panties. Seeing for yourself the effect that wearing sexy lingerie, (even just one piece of sexy lingerie) has on your man and the sexual ‘pleasure’ you share together will increase your confidence in the seductive, sexy being you are. As your confidence “grows” you can add more sexy lingerie to your collection. The internet is a great resource for finding the sexy lingerie to ‘drive” your man’s sexual desire for you wild! You can order sexy lingerie from the privacy and convenience of your own home. Many of these online retailers also offer huge discounts that offline stores can’t, and great rates on shipping too.

 

 

haha

 A troupe of dancers in skin-coloured body suits had Japanese national broadcaster NHK apologising to viewers of its New Year's Eve music special for what seemed to be a full-scale Janet Jackson-style wardrobe malfunction.

The dancers, who all appeared to be topless and wore skimpy bikini-style bottoms and feathered head-dresses, covered the stage during a performance by singer DJ OZMA, prompting about 250 viewers to phone in and complain.

"The dancers were wearing body suits, but we apologise for any misunderstanding," a presenter announced towards the end of the 57th annual "Red and White Song Contest".

"I guess it looked a bit too real," local media quoted the singer as telling reporters after the show, which regularly tops viewer ratings on New Year's Eve in Japan.