There are many things which are good for putting in bathtubs: bath bombs, home brew. But, as last night's episode of The Bachelor revealed, chocolate is probably not one of those things.
In scenes that prompted confusion from the show's fans, the episode saw Bachelor Richie spending a chocolate-themed solo date with 24-year-old single mum Alex, which ended in the pair spending a steamy (and probably quite sticky) evening in a chocolate tub.
![Richie and Alex discover the chocolate bath.](/web/20160828231652im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/r/1/y/q/9/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gr1jkf.png/1472185689119.jpg)
After a cooking class with "Lindt Master Chocolatier" Thomas, things moved to a metal bathtub outside, which – much to the disgust of Bachelor fans on social media – was filled with 300 litres of melted chocolate.
(A spokesperson for Lindt told Fairfax Media its chocolate was not used in the bath, which they said was wholly organised by The Bachelor's production team.)
![Everyone was a bit grossed out by the chocolate bath on last night's episode of <i>The Bachelor</i>.](/web/20160828231652im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/r/1/z/5/6/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gr1jkf.png/1472185689119.jpg)
OMG their feet and bits have been in that. I hope they get gastro. Erk. #chocolatebath #TheBachelorAU
— Bronnie Marquardt (@maidinaustralia) August 25, 2016
"Chocolate's good for releasing serotonin, which they say is the chemical of love," Richie told Alex, who, apparently convinced, joined Richie in going full Augustus Gloop in the mid-brown concoction.
But, how many Cupid's arrows would be shot at Richie and Alex as they entered the bathtub of actual, bottled love?
About as many as the tiny Pacific nation of Tuvalu have shot in Olympic archery events: none.
![Alex, after bathing in the chocolate concoction.](/web/20160828231652im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/r/1/z/c/v/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gr1jkf.png/1472185689119.jpg)
Fact check: serotonin is a bodily chemical responsible for maintaining mood balance, and is thought to regulate everything from sleep to appetite.
With such varied effects (not to mention 80 to 90 per cent of your body's serotonin being located in the gastrointestinal tract – how romantic), it seems a stretch to call it the "chemical of love". In fact, a quick Google reveals the most prominent person to have done so was someone with a Blogspot domain in 2014.
However, Richie's inducement was not without some truth.
Dr Caroline Moul from the University of Sydney says while there is no way sitting in a bath of melted Freddos will make you fall in love with anyone, consumption of dark chocolate may increase your body's production of the serotonin.
"It's in the cocoa," she says. "Milk chocolate doesn't really work. Eating dark chocolate can release a range of endorphins, not just serotonin. And obviously sitting in a bathtub won't do anything; you can't absorb it through your skin."
According to Dr Moul, the most anyone could hope for sitting in a bathtub of melted Freddos would be a placebo effect from the pleasure of bathing in the chocolate.
And for those wondering where they can have their own chocolate bath, they are seen on the services lists of some day spas, in between cocoa scrubs and milk chocolate wraps, but all of the day spas we spoke to who offer it use powdered chocolate.
So, even if you were to have a drink while you soak, it seems unlikely the "chemicals of love" would wriggle out of your bowel and sweep you off your feet.