Americans by the millions covet their chocolate treats. Ever since medical studies suggested that dark varieties may actually be healthful, people have been consuming these more often and with greater glee and less guilt, and this holiday season seems to be no exception!

We may well be rationalizing by focusing more on the antioxidant properties of dark chocolate, and less on nutritional concerns such as calories, caffeine, fat and sugar content and tooth decay. Dark chocolate has the potential to do much good: lower blood pressure, improve blood flow in arteries, lessen risk of blood clots, and lower LDL cholesterol oxidation, while raising serotonin and endorphin levels that could improve mood and pleasure.

With bright news like that coming from the authoritative medical journals, it’s little surprise that we feel we can have our chocolates. Nielsen Strategic Planner growth data show dark consumption soaring and milk chocolate consumption slowing, we can only surmise that people now are beginning to realize that milk chocolate is higher in fat and releases little or no antioxidants (because milk binds to them).

To give you some idea of the importance of chocolates, the dollar sales of total chocolate candy in the United Stares last year topped $4.9 billion; but it's important to note that its still the non-dark varieties which command 87% of sales – but the trend is shifting. In 2003 it was 94.5%!

Which type of chocolate do you prefer? Dark or Milk? And why?