For The Love of Food

Welcome to Friday’s For The Love of Food, Summer Tomato’s weekly link roundup.

We’ve had spectacular conversations on both posts from this week (Orthorexia, Bacon Worship And The Power of Food Culture and Fishing For Answers: How To Choose Fish and Seafood), thank you all for your thoughtful contributions.

Essential reading for today includes the New York Times examination of meat and sustainability. Sadly, 2 people have died and dozens were sickened this week (again) because of an E. coli outbreak from industrial beef. If you’re wondering why this keeps happening, check out the article about how these poor cows are fed chicken poop. Seriously. Also, Europe steps up to shut down health claims about probiotics, and Cynthia Kenyon gives us one more reason sugar is evil.

I still need votes for the People’s HealthBlogger Award by Wellsphere and would greatly appreciate your support. Wellsphere is a fantastic resource for anyone interested in healthy living. To vote for me you have to create an account with them, but you can delete it when you’re done (I have yet to get any spam). If you enjoy this blog, please take a minute to show your support. Much thanks to those who have already voted.

for Darya http://summertomato.com/

I read many more wonderful articles than I post here each week. If you’d like to see more or just don’t want to wait until Friday, be sure to follow me on Twitter (@summertomato) or the Summer Tomato Facebook fan page. For complete reading lists join me on the social bookmarking sites StumbleUpon and Delicious. I’m very active on all these sites and would love to connect with you there. (Note: If you want a follow back on Twitter introduce yourself with an @ message).

For The Love of Food

• The Carnivore’s Dilemma <<Exceptional article on the issue of meat eating and sustainability. It’s more complicated than you think. Now could you pass the bacon? (New York Times)
• 7 Food Groups That Will Help Boost Your Mood <<Not sure about how much science rests behind these recommendations, but they are all healthy foods and if they help with mood too, woohoo! (Dumb Little Man)
• The Omega-3 Battle: Which Margarine Is Healthier? <<Don’t eat margarine. However, since we discussed the health benefits of fish and omega-3 fatty acids this week, you might be interested in reading up on the debate going on in Europe right now. (Time)
• Grain Relapse <<B.S. of the week People who follow the primal/paleo lifestyle adhere to a diet of only meat and vegetables, refraining entirely from grains and legumes in any form. Though it is hard to find health flaws in a diet like this, I have a lot of trouble understanding the purpose of this much dietary restriction–it eliminates virtually every cuisine on the planet. Mark Sisson argues there is no reason to eat grains at all, but does this much dogma really make your life better? In my experience, small amounts of grains (preferably intact) make existence a whole lot more enjoyable. I also feel better and weigh less. (Mark’s Daily Apple)
• The Claim: A Person Can Pay Off a Sleep Debt by Sleeping Late on Weekends <<It takes longer than you think to make up for lost sleep, and it costs you in both physical and cognitive performance. Do yourself a favor and make sleep a priority. (New York Times)
• Sugar Negates Worm’s Life-Extending Mutation <<Sugar won’t just make you fat, it also slowly kills you. Seriously, if you’re going to bother with sugar make sure whatever you’re eating is worth it. (Scientific American)
• Europe rejects droves of health claims <<Although I’m proud of the FDA for essentially shutting down the Smart Choices campaign, Europe has always been better about making sure health claims on food labels actually mean something. This week they called bullshit on hundreds 🙂 (Food Politics)
• From The “Who Knew?” File: Cattle Commonly Fed Chicken Poop <<Can anyone name a way that industrial beef isn’t completely and utterly nauseating? I love a good piece of meat, but not when it was grown on chicken poop. Did I mention at least 2 people died this week because of a new E.coli outbreak from beef? So gross. (Treehugger, Marler Blog)
• Phys Ed: Why Doesn’t Exercise Lead to Weight Loss? <<Exercise is good for you, but it is nearly impossible to experience meaningful weight loss without dietary changes. Exercise is more beneficial for weight maintenance. A new study helps illuminate why. (Well Blog)
• How to Poach Pears <<I have never tried poaching pears, but now I want to. This recipe looks relatively easy, delicious and healthy. A perfect fall dessert. (David Lebovitz)

What awesomeness are you reading?

For The Love of Food

Welcome to Friday’s For The Love of Food, Summer Tomato’s weekly link roundup.

I had a hard time narrowing down articles this week with the New York Times Magazine Food Issue so full of deliciousness. Meat and food safety seem to be on everyone’s mind, and that’s a good thing. Definitely read up if you don’t know what I’m talking about. Also, Michael Pollan’s rules to eat by is worth flipping through, and a new chapter of Good Calories, Bad Calories has been unveiled.

Summer Tomato reader and famous dead head, David Gans, sent me his CD this week titled The Ones That Look The Weirdest Taste The Best. Vegetables of course! Track 6 is about a trip to the farmers market near his home. You can also check out his photos of odd looking vegetables on Flickr. I love this CD and David kind of reminds me of my rockstar hippie dad, which  makes me smile. Thanks David!

I read many more wonderful articles than I post here each week. If you’d like to see more or just don’t want to wait until Friday, be sure to follow me on Twitter (@summertomato) or the Summer Tomato Facebook fan page. For complete reading lists join me on the social bookmarking sites StumbleUpon and Delicious. I’m very active on all these sites and would love to connect with you there. (Note: If you want a follow back on Twitter introduce yourself with an @ message).

For The Love of Food

• Rules To Eat By <<Michael Pollan‘s latest in the New York Times. This one is short and fun, and he touches on a lot of the things he discussed in his lecture last week in Berkeley.
• E. Coli Path Shows Flaws in Beef Inspection <<If you haven’t read this expose about industrial meat yet, please do. It could save your life. (New York Times Magazine)
• Gout: The Missing Chapter from Good Calories, Bad Calories <<Somehow Tim Ferriss got Gary Taubes to let him publish an additional (and incomplete) chapter from his landmark book, Good Calories, Bad Calories. There is also an awesome video where Dr. Oz gets pwned by Dr. Weil, which is just as hilarious as it sounds. (While you’re at it you should also read Tim’s The Four Hour Work Week, because life is too short for email.)
• Stevia-sweetened strawberries: Does that idea sound scrumptuous? <<B.S. of the week Someone apparently thinks strawberries have too many calories so figured out a way to extract the sugar and replace it with stevia. Seriously. (Los Angeles Times)
• Lettuce and eggs top risky food list <<You’ve probably seen this and wondered why these jerks hate vegetables. My guess is they don’t. Lists like this are only evidence of the dangers of industrial foods. Hate the game, not the produce. (CNN)
• You will be eating again soon <<My buddy Rob got a fortune cookie that prophesied his inevitable desire to eat more Chinese food. That’s right, an ad in his fortune cookie. Is nothing sacred? (Making More of Today)
• Delicata Squash Salad with Kale & Cannellini Beans <<I  made a similar recipe this week, but this one looks way better. Maybe I’ll get it right next time. (shutterbean)
• 5 Ways to Get Out of a Food Rut <<Great tips for mixing up your meals. (Foodista)
• Should we irradiate meat? <<I can tell you from experience in the lab that irradiation does not do a perfect job killing bacteria (like E. coli). And the thing about bacteria is they multiply really fast. See the problem? Buy clean food and you don’t have to worry about this stuff. (Food Politics)
• Chef Rocco DiSpirito pitches frozen food to a tough room at BlogHer food conference <<I’m quoted in this article, but my name isn’t mentioned. Can you guess which one is me? (Los Angeles Times)

What are you reading?

For The Love of Food

Welcome to Friday’s For The Love of Food, Summer Tomato’s weekly link roundup.

Be sure to check out my guest post on how to get creative with your healthy eating over at Marbled Musings. Also this week: the controversy about exercise, more problems with industrial food (especially beef), healthy tips for the end of summer and the newly discovered benefits of fish.

I read many more wonderful articles than I post here each week. If you’d like to see more or just don’t want to wait until Friday, be sure to follow me on Twitter (@summertomato) or the Summer Tomato Facebook fan page. For complete reading lists join me on the social bookmarking sites StumbleUpon and Delicious. I’m very active on all these sites and would love to connect with you there.

I also invite you to submit your own best food and health articles for next week’s For The Love of Food, just drop me an email using the contact form. I am also accepting guest posts at Summer Tomato for any awesome healthstyle tips you’d like to share.

This post is an open thread. Share your thoughts, writing (links welcome!) and delicious meals of the week in the comments below.

For The Love of Food

• 10 Creative Tips for Healthy Eating <<My guest post about getting creative with your healthy eating over at Marbled Musings.
• Why Exercise Won’t Make You Thin <<The controversial article in Time Magazine brings up some interesting points, many of which I agree with and have experienced myself. Exercise is essential for health, however, and the take home message is only that diet is the most important factor in weight loss. Personally I exercise 3-6 days per week without exception.
• Exercise Won’t Make You Thin, but It Will Make You Healthy <<A short summary about how health and thinness are not the same thing. (Lifehacker)
• The Meat of the Problem <<Fantastic article about the role of meat consumption in climate change. (The Washington Post)
• Safeway Recalls Ground Beef in Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, South Dakota and Wyoming <<B.S. of the week. I don’t know about you guys, but I’m pretty tired of contaminated food. Industrial food tries to kill us in so many different ways I’m losing count. I’m happy to report, however, that there have been no outbreaks yet this year at my farmers market. (Marler Blog)
• Sugar vs. Corn Syrup <<Fascinating time line of America’s consumption of sugar and HFCS. (Mother Jones)
• Living Healthy on a College Campus <<College is one of the most difficult times to maintain a respectable healthstyle. Here are a few easy tips to keep in mind this fall. (Lifehacker)
• How much sunshine does it take to make enough vitamin D? Perhaps more than you think! <<Cool vitamin D calculator and other helpful hints. (Nutrition Data)
• Healthy Recipes for Tomatoes-Summer’s Antioxidant Food Star <<Apparently Epicurious loves summer tomatoes as much as I do!
• Fish Oils May Prevent and Treat Heart Disease <<It’s no secret I’m a big fan of fish, but it may do more than we previously expected. (HealthDay)

What great articles did you read and write this week?

This past week I mentioned a few times on Facebook that I was going out to eat. Once I mentioned something about meatballs, another time a burger and then fried chicken. The response from my friends was pretty uniform:

“YOU EAT MEAT?!?!”

I can understand the confusion. I spend pretty much all my free time trying to convince my readers that eating more vegetables, legumes and whole grains, while cutting back on red meat and refined carbohydrates will help you lose weight, keep your heart healthy and stave off cancer. My recipes almost never include meat or dairy and, it’s true, I don’t eat much of these things (at least not compared to most Americans).

But I do eat pork, beef, cheese and cake, and I love them!

What really distinguishes my eating habits from a typical Western diet is the quantity and quality of the unhealthy foods I eat, as well as the quantity and diversity of the healthy foods.

As I have explained before, taste is a huge factor in what I decide to consume. I do not eat gross foods just because they are supposed to be healthy, and I do not deprive myself of foods that I love. Instead I have learned to cook myself healthy food that tastes amazing–food I would be proud to serve to friends and chefs alike. My method is to get the best ingredients I can get my hands on, and that involves seasonal shopping every weekend at the farmers market.

I have a similar strategy for less healthy foods.

When I do choose to eat meat, cheese or dessert I do so with the understanding that these foods are treats I cannot take for granted. And because I know they are not indulgences I can (or want) to make very often, when the time comes I make sure that whatever I am eating is unquestionably worth it. In San Francisco this probably means I’ll be having the best ______ I’ve ever eaten in my life.

I never waste my health or time on cheap junk food.

Besides excellent food there are occasionally other circumstances that give me valid reasons to stray off course. For example, once in a while an experience justifies making an exception. In these cases it can be more important to spend quality time with friends or loved ones than it is to have a balanced meal. No one likes a food snob, so when faced with a situation like this I just eat whatever foods I like, relax and enjoy myself. If the food happens to be unhealthy, I make some effort to not eat too much of it.

The reason I do not stress about these situations is because the biggest impact on your health comes from how you choose to eat most of the time, not what you eat some of the time.

Look at any of my grocery lists or recipes and you know that my diet consists of abundant fresh vegetables, legumes, fish, grains and fruit. This is why my cholesterol, triglycerides, fasting glucose, iron, body fat and pretty much any other health measure you can think of are so impressive (my HDL is higher than my LDL!). But I do still eat eggs, poultry and cheese on occasion, and sometimes even bread, sugar and red meat.

Most importantly, everything I eat is absolutely delicious and there is no question in my mind I can sustain these habits indefinitely. I never feel deprived of anything. I always feel healthy and nourished. And with the changing seasons, my meals never get boring.

But trust me, if I am really feeling the burger at Absinthe I don’t hesitate to go get me one.

• Do you think there is room in a healthy diet for indulgences?

• Is there room for health in an indulgent diet?