NOTE: Safety of working with and eating paraffin wax

"Mom's recipe for "Peanut Butter Balls" calls for melting chocolate and wax together. However, you might want to omit the wax, given the information below. If you do decide to use it, follow the safety directions for working with it."--Ronnie

First, from http://www.baking911.com:

TO MELT CHOCOLATE WITH PARAFFIN: Some recipes call for adding paraffin wax so the chocolate hardens with a sheen. It is perfect when working with small amounts of chocolate, such as dipping cookies or fruit. However, paraffin is not necessary for successful dipping and you may not like its flavor. If you are using top-quality chocolate, it already has everything in it that you need. Paraffin is found in the grocery store. NOTE - Do not leave the melting wax unattended or use high heat when melting because it is highly flammable. WARNING: Melt the chocolate and the wax, but do NOT try to melt the chocolate and wax together (unless using chocolate chips), as it will not work. 1. Melt the chocolate. Remove from heat. 2. Melt the wax in an uncovered pot over very low heat. It doesn't take that long, so watch carefully. Remove from heat. 3. When both the chocolate and the wax are still molten, but cooled slightly, pour the wax into the chocolate slowly, stirring constantly. Stand back while doing so or don't look into the pot directly; you don't want either to splash and hit you -- both are VERY HOT. TO MELT CHOCOLATE CHIPS WITH PARAFFIN - can melt together: I use 1/4 bar (1-ounce) paraffin wax per 1 (12-ounce) package of semisweet chocolate chips. I use this also when making Christmas candies. Just melt it with the chocolate in the top of a double boiler over hot water.

Then, this from http://www.ochef.com:

Q. My friend wants me to make chocolate covered bananas for him to take to his family reunion. I don't usually make desserts. I've seen this done by my mother, and believe that when she melts the chocolate she adds wax to it (and then dips the bananas and then freezes them). How much wax? What kind? Any suggestions?

A. Yes. Don't eat wax! Wax is not food. Wax was never meant to be food. Yes, all right, your mother and many other well-intentioned people have melted paraffin into chocolate to make it easier to coat things like frozen bananas. Some recipes even call for it. But that doesn't make it right. It's not right. Wax is not food. The US Food and Drug Administration has never approved of paraffin as a food or food additive, and guess why? Paraffin is a derivative of the production of crude oil. It is thought to irritate the skin and the lining of the intestines, and to cause physical discomfort.