For the Love of Food
by Darya Rose | Apr 4, 2014

For The Love of Food
Welcome to Friday’s For The Love of Food, Summer Tomato’s weekly link roundup.
This week low-fat diets get the boot, calorie restricted monkeys are vindicated, and morning sunshine keeps you slim.
Want to see all my favorite links? (There’s lots more). Be sure to follow me on on Delicious. I also share links on Twitter @summertomato, Google+ and the Summer Tomato Facebook page. I’m very active on all these sites and would love to connect with you. (And yes, I took that pepper heart pic myself).
Links of the week
- Rethinking Fat: The Case For Adding Some Into Your Diet <<It’s getting really, really, really, really hard to argue in favor of low-fat diets anymore. Woo hoo! (NPR)
- Monkey caloric restriction study shows big benefit; contradicts earlier study <<Super interesting new data (from a different set of monkeys) showing the benefits of caloric restriction (limiting total calories to 30% less than normal) for extending life and slowing aging and disease. This new evidence is much more congruous with existing research from several species. While it’s not the happiest news I’ve ever reported for food loving readers, the case is mounting for making value-based food indulgences (i.e. “This is croissant tooooootally worth it”) and practicing mindful eating to be naturally satisfied with less. (ScienceDaily)
- New evidence linking fruit and vegetable consumption with lower mortality <<This may not sound like news, but the magnitude of the findings surprised even me. Also interesting is how the vast majority of the benefits come from vegetables, compared to far less protection from fruit. Are you getting your 7 servings per day? (ScienceDaily)
- How Exercise Can Help You Live Longer <<Interesting new analysis shows how much exercise can improve health and reduce disease risk, even when other risk factors (like cholesterol, blood pressure and waist size) are prominent. (NY Times)
- 100 Calories of Nuts: A Visual Guide <<A handy guide for how many nuts should be considered a portion. If you eat much more than this, learn to stop sooner, drink a glass of water and wait 15 minutes. You almost certainly don’t need more. (The Kitchn)
- Morning rays keep off pounds <<This research is still pretty new, but I am fascinated by the role circadian rhythms appear to play in our health and body weight. (ScienceDaily)
- EATING SLOWLY CUTS CALORIES <<If eating less is a goal of yours, then slower, more mindful eating is an excellent habit to focus on. (Dr. Weil)
- Autism begins in pregnancy, according to study: Cortical layers disrupted during brain development in autism <<Next time someone tells you that vaccines cause autism, you might remind them that pregnancy occurs several years before vaccines are administered. (ScienceDaily)
- Learning to Love Natto <<I’ll admit it, I have yet to learn to appreciate natto. But I can assure you that if someone on this planet can acquire a taste for this intensely pungent food, then ANYONE can learn to enjoy vegetables, fish, mushrooms, beets, or anything else you grew up shunning. C’mon, grow a pair. (Ruth Reichl)
- Garlic Parmesan Edamame with Toasted Black Sesame Seeds <<Speaking of soy beans, here’s a much friendlier version that looks easy to throw together any time of year. Sounds delish too! (sprinkles and sauce)
What inspired you this week?
The arguments for a diet lower in certain fat are still out there, especially if you split up animal-based fats (meat, dairy), whole food fats (nuts, seeds), and refined fats (oil, margarine). Especially considering that in the same post you advise restricting nut consumption while also point to an article that defends fat consumption, this stuff isn’t as conclusive as we want to think.
The article I shared was specifically about how different fats seem to have different effects, but how the generic lowfat diets aren’t justified by the data. I shared the nut portions post because nuts are often a domino food for people and can be very easy to inadvertently overeat, not because they are specifically fattening or unhealthy.
Darya,
You should stick with food and not give your opinion as fact when it comes to vaccines. Autism may have more than one cause and your link to that study may very be one of them but despite the government has already awarded money to families where vaccines did indeed cause autism in thier children.See the case of Hannah Poling http://www.cbsnews.com/news/family-to-receive-15m-plus-in-first-ever-vaccine-autism-court-award/
Hannah Polling’s father was a Neurologist from John Hopkin’s.
Since according to the article that you link to: “All other autism “test cases” have been defeated at trial.” and the one referred to in the article was settled before trial it doesn’t really lend a a whole lot of credibility to the “vaccines cause autism” argument. It just means that lawyers likely made a decision that a prolonged court battle would be more expensive than a settlement.
Michael,
Do you even know how the system works when there is an injury related to vaccines? You can’t go through the normal legal system and instead must go through vaccine court. Also, the statement below is completley full of doubllespeak
“In acknowledging Hannah’s injuries, the government said vaccines aggravated an unknown mitochondrial disorder Hannah had which didn’t “cause” her autism, but “resulted” in it”
And how convenient is it that Then-director of the Centers for Disease Control Julie Gerberding (who is now President of Merck Vaccines). There is definitely no conflict of interest there!
My son has autism. Vaccines did not cause it. I do not want people to be so scared of my son that do not protect their children and other children by vaccinating them. Children are becoming seriously sick and some are dying because they are so scared they will be like my son who is a wonderful, loving person. He is not a scary disease to be avoided at all costs.
Ec,
I’m sure you do have a wonderful son and in your case vaccines may not have been the cause. There are many possible causes for autism and vaccines are one possible cause. Many children have gotten the same diseases that they were vaccinated against. Why are vaccines so rushed today and why are so many given at the same time? 30 years ago we didn’t even get 1/3 of what is given now and the timeframe has greatly been reduced. Our bodies and immune systems have evolved with nature and getting sick and fighting disease. Vaccines are full of unnatural ingredients that are bodies are not use to and There are no long term studies on the effects of these vaccines. most are rushed to market and most of the studies are funded or sponsored by the same pharm companies that stand to profit from the vaccines. The real scare tactics are the ones big media and pharm companies use into trying to force vaccines on everyone and trying to take away the right to choose what someone will or won’t inject into someone’s body.
I’m always amazed when I meet someone who is not Korean or Japanese who likes natto. I thought there were no such people, but I have met a half dozen or so. I try it and it makes me gag. I’ll just have to be healthy without it.
I’m so glad for the low-fat thing to be over. I was raised on that, and food was awful, and I binged frequently, and am much happier now with normal food. My parents still try to get low-fat cheese, and it’s completely fake, has trans-fat, and is disgusting. Hopefully, even they have gotten the message by now.
Gross.