Tag: eating
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Preventing Childhood Obesity
If you read The Onion, you know it has a disturbing tendency to report things as they really are, with a bite. It does not disappoint with “Preventing Childhood Obesity.” It lists a mix of the sad and absurd, all with underlying facts, including: Raising them in a different country may not help. Although US…
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What Makes a Fruit or Vegetable Good?
Produce has a short shelf life, and much of it is wasted because there is no good way to store it (or because it gets to your fridge, but you don’t use it in time). “Shelf appeal” is a major consideration for sellers of produce, pushed partly by consumers, too, and as a result countless…
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The Cost of Getting Lean
Many people begin an exercise program excited to “look like their goal body” — often a celebrity or model. The fitness industry and mass media promote this kind of goal heavily, in the way they market imagery and make claims for the recommendations they give, but they often hand-wave the realities behind the photos. Even…
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Oops
Having a big food day once in a while is no problem, but this comic from Sarah C Andersen shows the all-too-familiar pattern of just feeling dragged along, not even enjoying what you’re eating. While overeating might just be an occasional thing, eating on autopilot, or mindlessly, can feel bad for many reasons and is…
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Healthy Eating Is Also About “How Much”
Peanut butter and similar foods are very calorie dense. You may want to use a teaspoon rather than a tablespoon to make it easier to measure portions. Every day we see claims for super foods and “healthy options,” but foods that are healthful can still be eaten to excess. This isn’t a moral thing –…
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Is Breakfast the Most Important Meal of the Day?
Over the last few decades, claims have grown up around breakfast — notably that people who eat “a good breakfast” have all kinds of good outcomes, like easier weight control and better metabolic function. There isn’t a lot of great science on this, because studies are notoriously bad at food tracking, but there’s also no…
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Are Energy Bars for Women Different?
Men don’t need to avoid “women’s” bars. Some of these bars do emphasize nutrients that “women need,” like folic acid, but while women can often use a boost of some of these ingredients, men can use them, too. The biggest difference between bars targeted at men and women is that women’s bars tend to be…
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How Do I Get My Partner to Exercise?
Johns Hopkins has presented data for a large group of middle-aged couples, who were asked about exercise habits at two medical visits conducted roughly six years apart. If one was getting at least the recommended amount of exercise each week at the first of those two visits, it was quite likely the other would be,…
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Should I Eat Falafel?
TIME magazine quizzed health experts who said, “Yes!” Chickpeas contain fiber and protein, although some experts didn’t love the fried food aspect. (If you want the joy of chickpeas and don’t want to fry up falafel yourself, try some hummus and pita bread — look for whole wheat pita for a touch of extra fiber.)…