FOR THE LOVE OF FOOD: Soup is the new juice, BPA-free plastics still dangerous, and how to lose 160 lbs without dieting

For the Love of Food
Welcome to Friday’s For The Love of Food, Summer Tomato’s weekly link roundup.
This week soup is the new juice, BPA-free plastics still dangerous, and how to lose 160 lbs without dieting.
Too busy to read them all? Try this awesome free speed reading app I just discovered to read at 300+ wpm. So neat!
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Links of the week
- Souping Is the New Juicing <<While I’m still not a fan of “cleanses,” I prefer this direction. (NY Times)
- “Constrained Energy Expenditures” and Not Outrunning Our Forks <<“You lose weight in the kitchen, you gain health in the gym.” Well said, Yoni. (Weighty Matters)
- Testing the Insulin Model: A Response to Dr. Ludwig <<For you geeks, there’s a fascinating scientific argument going on about the role of insulin in weight gain. Interesting stuff. (Whole Health Source)
- 10 Things I Did To Lose 160 Pounds Without Ever Dieting <<Very inspirational, with practical advice. (mindbodygreen)
- ‘BPA-free’ plastic accelerates embryonic development, disrupts reproductive system <<This stuff is scary. I opt for glass containers whenever possible. (ScienceDaily)
- Why Carb Counters Are Running for the Cauliflower <<As much as I love cauliflower, there are other vegetables out there you guys. (WSJ)
- Lessons From Legendary General Sun Tzu: How to Use Military Strategy to Build Better Habits <<Good advice, even if you aren’t a general. (James Clear)
- How to Get Past Feeling ‘Meh’ <<For those moments when willpower really does help. (Stone Soup)
- How to Fight the Tired Parent Syndrome <<Smart advice for you parents out there. (Nerd Fitness)
- super bowl slim down – chili verde <<This looks so tasty. Perfect satisfying yet nutritious winter Super Bowl food. (Crunchy Radish)
What inspired you this week?
Hi Darya,
I consider myself to be fairly well read when it comes to nutrition. Still I have to confess that the recent Whole Health Source / Ludwig articles you’ve linked to left me feeling confused and frustrated.
Initially I heard about Dr. Ludwig’s new book (Always Hungry) and was looking forward to reading it. I thought to myself “hey I’ve been eating more fat and it seems to help me with satiety and my nutritionist keeps telling me more fat is better – let’s see what he has to say”. Then I saw the first link you posted on a Friday roundup where you mentioned something along the lines of being seduced by the new popular diet book (Ludwig’s). I don’t want to read a fad book so based on your comment and the article and took it off my list.
Soon after that I sat down to watch the Pollan documentary you recommended and hey – there’s Dr. Ludwig on the screen! I liked Michael Pollan’s approach and if he has Ludwig as an expert in the documentary maybe he’s worth taking a look at? I see the Medium post from Ludwig and it makes sense – back on my reading list his book goes. And now here’s another article contradicting Ludwig’s post point by point. It’s enough to make your head spin!
Is all this back and forth aimed at a very niche audience? Lately it feels that the more I read the more confused I feel. It leaves me wanting to go back to calories in / calories out. Except I know that’s way too simple. Thoughts? Thanks for your time.
Thank you so much for asking this publicly. You’re right, this argument is for the scientific community and doesn’t matter much to you. Ludwig is a good scientist. The argument Guyenet is making is that the mechanism that makes real food less fattening can’t be explained entirely by the insulin hypothesis, it’s more complex.
Whenever you’re confused about nutrition, go back and read this article and it should help put things in perspective:
http://summertomato.com/processed-food-vs-real-food/
Darya, Thanks for taking the time to reply. The post you linked to makes sense. I’ll focus more on real foods versus going down the rabbit hole of all these different theories. Thanks!
Ana