FOR THE LOVE OF FOOD: Food inspections stall in government shutdown, snack drawers teach kids moderation, and the optimal diet for humans

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

This week food inspections stall in government shutdown, snack drawers teach kids moderation, and the optimal diet for humans.

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Links of the week

• Don’t think of it as a New Year’s resolution. Think of it as a new skill. – Excellent advice from Jae Berman. (Washington Post)
• A massive amount of American food safety inspections aren’t happening due to the government shutdown, and it could mean more food-poisoning outbreaks – I guess it’s a good idea to make sure you’re mostly eating cooked food these days. Such a bummer. (Business Insider)
• Court Strikes Down Iowa’s ‘Ag-Gag’ Law That Blocked Undercover Investigations – Huge. Great to see this. (NPR)
• Snack drawers and other ways to teach kids to eat in moderation – I like this idea. Anyone try anything like this with their kiddos? (Washington Post)
• Gardening Could Be The Hobby That Helps You Live to 100 – One of the most common activities for centenarians that live in Blue Zones. We’re looking forward to planting season here in the Pacific Northwest. (BBC)
• Is There an Optimal Diet for Humans? – What would you guess? (NY Times)
• 12 Reasons To Ditch The Diet Mentality – Wow. It’s almost like I wrote this. The world has changed a lot since I first started ST. That makes me happy. (Huffpo)
• Caring About The Quality of Your Food Is Not A Disorder (Orthorexia’s Many False Media Positives) – 100%. It’s nearly impossible to eat healthy in Western culture these days and not seem a little odd compared to everyone else. That doesn’t mean it needs to be detrimentally obsessive. As Yoni says, caring is not a disorder. (Weighty Matters)
• Don’t want antibiotics sprayed on your citrus? Sorry – it’s about to expand, big-time – This is very dangerous. Antibiotic resistance is pretty terrifying and I’d hate to see this happen. (Florida Phoenix)
• A Michelin-starred chef says restaurants should stop serving avocados because they’re the blood diamonds of Mexico’ – I’d actually never heard this before and it’s worth considering. (Insider)
• Is Eating Deli Meats Really That Bad for You? – It drives me nuts that I can only find “no nitrates” (hint: that’s BS) and “uncured” (also BS) bacon at Whole Foods these days. That’s all labeling slight-of-hand. When I do consume processed meats I get the most high-quality meat that has been processed in the most traditional ways possible and understand that it’s not the healthiest thing in the world to be eating, so make it a special treat. (NY Times)
• Ribollita – The Tuscan Stew you Should be Eating Regularly – I love winter stews. Nom nom nom. (101 Cookbooks)

What inspired you this week?