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

Next week’s Mindful Meal Challenge will start again on Monday. Sign up now to join us!

This week dinner is your enemy, vegetarians suffer from depression, and vitamin B supplements cause cancer.

Too busy to read them all? Try this awesome free speed reading app to read at 300+ wpm. So neat!

I also share links on Twitter @summertomato and the Summer Tomato Facebook page. I’m very active on all these sites and would love to connect with you.

Read the rest of this story »

For the Love of Food

Welcome to Friday’s For The Love of Food, Summer Tomato’s weekly link roundup. It’s been a few weeks so I went ahead and included 15 excellent articles instead of the usual 10.

This week pilates changes your brain, all your food is fake, and the big problem with people pleasing.

Too busy to read them all? Try this awesome free speed reading app to read at 300+ wpm. So neat!

I also share links on Twitter @summertomato and the Summer Tomato Facebook page. I’m very active on all these sites and would love to connect with you.

Read the rest of this story »

For The Love of Food

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

This week how the FDA is killing us softly, rats get fat on calorie-free sweeteners, and why coffee is better than 5-Hour Energy.

Want to see all my favorite links? 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

• The FDA Is Out to Lunch <<The title doesn’t do this article justice. If you’ve ever eaten fruit salad, you need to read this. Did you know more people die from food poisoning every year in the US than were killed in the 9/11 terrorist attacks? And nothing is being done about it. (On Earth)
• 5-hour Energy Stops Deceptive Web Ad <<You didn’t really think this stuff was harmless, did you? But it is probably not the caffeine that’s the problem. (Center for Science in the Public Interest)
• Do artificial sweeteners make rats fat? <<People looking to lose weight often turn to artificial, calorie-free sweeteners, even though they’ve never been shown to be effective for weight loss. In this study, rats gained more eating fake sugar than real sugar, despite eating the same number of calories. (Food Politics)
• The Case for Drinking as Much Coffee as You Like <<A thorough examination of the benefits of coffee. (The Atlantic)
• Mild Vitamin B12 Deficiency Associated With Accelerated Cognitive Decline <<I’ve often argued that there may be more subtle implications of slight nutrient deficiencies. Here’s some data that it may indeed be the case for vitamin B12. (ScienceDaily)
• Less Than 25 Percent of Americans Walk for More Than Ten Minutes Continuously in a Typical Week <<Seriously??? This isn’t talking about you guys though, right? Get those 10,000 steps! (ScienceDaily)
• The Physical Toll of Negative Emotions <<Sometimes health problems start with stress. Great read, especially if you’re having problems and cannot pinpoint the cause. (Mark’s Daily Apple)
• Analysis of Conflicting Fish Oil Studies Finds That Omega-3 Fatty Acids Still Matter <<Confused by the press over omega-3s and fish oil? A new analysis sorts it out. (ScienceDaily)
• Diet’s Role In Lowering Risk of Repeat Heart Attacks <<Know someone who ignores their diet because they assume the medications they are on will keep them healthy? You might want to share this one with them. (Wall Street Journal)
• Moroccan Grated Carrot and Beet Salad <<Moroccan flavors are my favorite. Though beets and carrots are so sweet already I’d skip the honey in this recipe. (Simply Recipes)

What inspired you this week?

For The Love of Food

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

This week some interesting new data on the ideal amount of salt to eat, frightening news about BPA and canned soup, and a series of fascinating articles on how to maintain cognitive health.

Want to see all my favorite links? Be sure to follow me on on Digg. 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.

Links of the week

• Study Calls Sodium Intake Guidelines Into Question <<I’ve always been skeptical of the super low sodium recommendations suggested by the USDA and other agencies. Processed food is always a major cofounder, and likely the real problem. (ScienceDaily)
• BPA Levels Spike After Eating Canned Soup: Study <<Wow, this is no small difference. I think it is time to majorly reconsider eating anything from a BPA-containing can. (Medline)
• Cigarettes may be useful for distance runners?!? (or, How to prove anything with a review article) <<This is an excellent piece about the dangers of over-interpreting correlations (e.g. all epidemiological data) in science. (Obesity Panacea)
• Low vitamin D linked to heart disease, death <<This is interesting because, for once, it shows a benefit of taking supplements to protect health. (Medline)
• Americans’ ‘ideal weight’ shifts upward <<I find this very disturbing, though not surprising. Look at photos or videos from 30 years ago and most of the people would be considered “too thin” by today’s standards. But they were much healthier. (Los Angeles Times)
• How Exercise Benefits the Brain <<Workouts are important for more than just looking great, they can also help you perform better at work or school. (New York Times)
• Non-Fried Fish Might Help Ward Off Alzheimer’s: Study <<Surprisingly low amounts of fish consumption were shown to be beneficial in preventing cognitive decline. (Medline)
• It Could Be Old Age, or It Could Be Low B12 <<Another interesting piece regarding the importance of nutrition in maintaining cognitive ability, this time vitamin B12. (New York Times)
• This is your mind on meditation: less wandering, more doing <<I’m a big advocate of mindful eating, but mindfulness can also be important in helping you focus in general. (Los Angeles Times)
• Barley Risotto <<Such a lovely, hearty winter dish. Looks delicious. (Mark Bittman)

What inspired you this week?

For The Love of Food

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

I had to restrain myself from including 20 articles in this week’s post, but for your sake I kept it to my usual top 10. Whatever you do don’t miss Bittman’s calculations on the price of broccoli versus McDonald’s, how easy it is to sell fruit to kids, how global warming is affecting the fishing industry, how the food industry is responding to the Real Food movement, and the other five articles.

Want to see all my favorite links? Be sure to follow me on on Digg. I also share links on Twitter (@summertomato) and the Summer Tomato Facebook fan page. I’m very active on all these sites and would love to connect with you.

Links of the week

• Is Junk Food Really Cheaper? <<Though there have been some valid criticisms that this may not apply to those in extreme poverty, it certainly applies to a good chunk of the population (college students, I’m looking at you) who complain about the cost of healthy food. (New York Times)
• When Chefs Move the Fruit <<Hey, guess what! When you make fruit look tasty by putting it in colorful bowls sales increase by 104% in schools. Why not try it in your kitchen? (ScienceDaily)
• Reebok to Pay Settlement Over Health Claims <<It’s a rare day when a government agency calls BS of the week for me. Thank you FTC. (New York Times)
• The End Of Fish And Chips: Climate Change Causing Massive Changes In European Fisheries <<This is terrifying, and it’s real. (Fast Company)
• In Debate About Food, a Monied New Player <<They’re scared. This is good news. (New York Times)
• Food products described as artisan go mainstream <<While this kind of makes me want to vomit, it also kind of makes me really happy because it means there is a demand for quality again. I’m hoping consumers are smart enough to tell the difference between authenticity and marketing. (Los Angeles Times)
• Report: U.S. spending billions of dollars to subsidize junk food <<The apple/Twinkie comparisons they use in this article are really powerful. Please read. (Los Angeles Times)
• Humans on a Cafeteria Diet <<Want to get people to voluntarily eat 50% more than they normally would? Feed them American junk food. (Whole Health Source)
• Study of the Day: Vitamin B12 May Help Prevent Brain Shrinkage <<Sharing this study because I know a lot of vegetarians and vegans read this blog, and this is a friendly reminder to get enough B12 please. (The Atlantic)
• LENTIL SALAD | BROWN BAG CHALLENGE <<This beautiful lentil salad looks like so many of my lunches I had to share. SO easy and delicious, from one of my favorite blogs Chez Us.

What inspired you this week?

Thanks to those of you who participated in episode #4 about healthy vegetarian & vegan diets. I learned a lot while researching this post, and there’s valuable info on omega-3 fatty acids, essential minerals and other nutrition information that’s important for omnivores as well.

All show notes, including my annotated Kindle notes of Amazon’s most popular vegetarian nutrition book (I’m not a fan) are below. Everyone should at least skim through them, there’s a lot of great information/clarification in there.

Episode #5, Dairy: Friend or Foe? is airing on Monday, April 11 at 6:30pm PST. Does milk help or hurt your chances or getting osteoporosis? Does calcium cause prostate cancer? What’s the role of milk in acne? What about raw milk, is it really the holy grail? Join us on Monday to learn the answers.

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March 29, 2011 | Episode #4 of Summer Tomato Live. The topic is healthy vegetarian and vegan diets (with lots of interesting nutrition information for omnivores too).

Live participation is only available to subscribers of the newsletter Tomato Slice. You can sign up at any time, even during the show, and the password for participation will be emailed to you immediately.

Click here to sign up and get the password

Read this for more information on the show and newsletter

To watch live and join the discussion click the red “Join event” button, login with Twitter or your Vokle account, and enter the password when prompted.

I encourage you to call in with video questions, particularly if your question is nuanced and may involve a back and forth discussion. Please use headphones to call in however, or the feedback from the show is unbearable.

The show will be recorded and released to the public next week. Show notes are below.

Show notes:

Follow Darya on Kindle

Darya’s Kindle notes on Becoming Vegetarian by Vesanto Melina and Brenda Davis

Health:

• Healthy Vegetable Sources of Protein and Iron
• Eco-Atkins Diet May Be Healthier Alternative for Weight Loss
• Fish Eaters and Vegetarians Have Less Cancer
• Intact Grains vs. Whole Grains
• Quinoa: Did You Know?
• Fishing For Answers: How To Choose Fish and Seafood
• Latest Study on Vitamin K and Coronary Heart Disease (Whole Health Source)
• The Unconvincing Evidence that Saturated Fat Causes Heart Disease (Raw Food SOS)
• Which Non-Dairy Milk is Best? (Nutrition Diva)
• A caveman and a vegan walk into a bar…
• Summer Tomato Book Review: The China Study

Tools:

• How (And Why) To Cook And Freeze Large Batches Of Lentils
• How To Cook Dried Beans Using A Pressure Cooker
• Are You Bean Careful?
• How To Cook Perfect Rice Without A Rice Cooker

I hope to see you there!