No matter where you stand on the confectionary continuam, you’re a sucker for suckers, a chocolate connoisseur, or you have a soft spot for hard candy, summer is the perfect time to indulge your sweet tooth and tap into nostalgia one bite at a time.  

Apologies to candy canes and no offense to fudge squares, but certain candies are meant to shine during long days and warm weather.

A few of these high-season handfuls include the following: 

Lollipops

Lollipops are a summertime favorite because of their portability and resistance to melting under the blazing sun. They also come in various flavors, from sweet and fruity to tart and tangy, catering to a wide range of taste preferences. 

Fun fact: The lollipop was invented in 1908 (and named after a racehorse). However, people in China, Egypt, and Arabia began coating fruits in honey and putting them on sticks during ancient times, laying the foundation for this modern-day treat.

Licorice

Like lollipops, licorice isn’t prone to easily melting, making it a good summer solution for a raging sweet tooth. While red and black varieties are the most well-known, licorice is more versatile than its roots suggest: It also comes in chocolate, tropical, and cinnamon flavors (and more!). 

Fun fact: Whether or not you like black licorice often comes down to genetics. While scientists have yet to discover a “licorice gene,” they believe hereditary factors play a role in how sensitive someone is to bitter compounds. This is why people tend to either hate black licorice or love it, with very little middle ground. 

Saltwater Taffy

Taffy has pull all year long, but there is something about warm weather that summons images of beachside boardwalks and the feeling of sand between your toes. Taffy’s versatility is another perk; this ooey-gooey goodie is available in tons of flavors, from traditional taste bud pleasers to out-of-the-box indulgences. 

Fun fact: Saltwater taffy isn’t actually made with saltwater. The moniker was part of a 1800s marketing gimmick thought up by an Atlantic City candy shop. The name stuck, and taffy’s long-standing connection to coastal cities buoyed this briny tale. 

Gummy Bears

M&Ms might have seized the tagline, but it’s really gummy bears that melt in your mouth and not in your hand. A sugary, sweet, chewy, and light bite, gummy bears make for enjoyable eats on muggy days. 

Fun fact: Gummy bears were invented in Germany by Hans Riegel (the founder of Haribo). Other candies that originated in Germany include Werther's Original, Ritter Sport, and Mamba fruit chews. 

Fun Dip

To adults, Fun Dip seems like little more than a bag of sugar and a piece of chalk, but red, purple, and green fingertips are a rite of passage in childhood. A candy synonymous with lazy afternoons and Little League games, Fun Dip is among the most popular summertime snacks of all time.  

Fun fact: Fun Dip isn’t just delicious; it’s devious. It uses a type of powdered sugar that sticks to the tongue, making the flavors longer-lasting and more appealing to sweet fiends. 

There’s a reason why we want to hang out with Hershey’s and nestle up to Nestlé. In short, chocolate is a comfort food, a sweet delight we embrace whenever we need a little sugary pick-me-up or a cocoa caress. 

But the idea that chocolate is good for us, it turns out, isn’t just luscious lore or a tasty tale; chocolate benefits the body and the mind, at least in moderation. 

Read on to learn more about the perks of this beautiful bite:

Chocolate is a Great Source of Flavonoids
Flavonoids play an important role in health because of all the medical properties they possess (including anti-cancer, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antiviral). They’re known for protecting the brain and the heart as well. 

Chocolate is a potent source of flavonoids due to its cocoa content, allowing one to argue that it could be considered a health food. This comes with a caveat, however; dark chocolate has more cocoa than milk chocolate, making it the healthier option. 

Milk chocolate still contains cocoa, but at lower percentages (depending on the type and brand). This means it’s not void of nutrition; it’s just not as nutritious as its cocoa-packed counterpart.  

Chocolate Improves Athletic Performance

One of the lesser-known, hidden benefits of chocolate can be found at the gym or on your five-mile afternoon run: Science tells us that chocolate can help with endurance. 

A study conducted at Kingston University in London found that bicyclists who ate dark chocolate before racing used less oxygen and cycled further. This is thanks to chocolate’s ability to increase nitric oxide. Beetroot juice offers this benefit as well; it just doesn’t provide quite as many perks for your palate. 

Other studies have found that drinking chocolate milk after a workout can enhance athletic performance. It does this by replenishing exhausted muscles at quicker rates and improving exercise recovery.   

The above doesn’t necessarily mean you should swipe out Eye of the Tiger for Bite of the Twix; still, it offers some food for your fitness thoughts. 

Chocolate Makes Us Happy

The idea that chocolate makes us happy isn’t just in our heads; it’s due to what happens in our heads. Eating chocolate stimulates the release of endorphins, feel-good chemicals that are released through other activities, too (such as working out, petting animals, getting a massage, and meditating).

Chocolate can also interact with other chemicals that influence mood and a sense of well-being, including dopamine and serotonin (which is why its reputation as a comfort food is well-founded). When people feeling down consume chocolate, it can lift their moods and give them a more potent sense of inner calm.  

Chocolate may not rival kale or go toe-to-toe with a bushel of blueberries, but it’s no slouch when it comes to wellness. In moderation, chocolate (particularly dark chocolate) is a wonderful addition to the food pyramid, one that’s good for your health and great for your soul. 

Assorted Goods and Candy, located in Louisville, Colorado, is your one-stop shop for sugar cravings. From gummies galore to melt-in-your-mouth fudge, we keep all types of candy handy for your sweet tooth needs. Sign up for our newsletter to stay in the lollipop loop on deals, specials, and new inventory.