FOR THE LOVE OF FOOD: How to increase self-control, the science of hangry, and exercise vs standing

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

This week how to increase self-control, the science of hangry, and exercise vs standing.

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Links of the week

• You Have More Control Over Your Self-Control Than You Think – In the field of psychology there has been some debate over whether ego-depletion (here we usually call it The What-the-Hell Effect) is real. My view has always been that it is real, but the experience of the willful effort you exert (aka willpower) is subjective. In other words, you have a lot more willpower to do things when you don’t consider them hard or a chore. New research is showing that reframing the effort you exert can indeed give you more “willpower,” by helping you think about it differently. This is why I encourage you to shop at the farmers market. When you’re excited about vegetables, healthy eating doesn’t feel like a diet. (Psychology Today)
• Exercise vs. Standing? You Probably Need to Do Both – Makes perfect sense to me. I always find it remarkable how quickly exercise has a positive impact on health. This study design was only four days long. (NY Times)
• Want Your Child To Eat (Almost) Everything? There Is A Way – Obviously all kids are different, but also whole cultures do this better than we do. (NPR)
• Are you really you when you’re hungry? – Interesting stuff. Even though they don’t explicitly say it, they imply that mindfulness around your emotions can mitigate this effect. (ScienceDaily)
• Bonito Flakes Are a Gift From the Umami Gods – Truth. (Lifehacker)
• How Fake Nutrition News Hurts Us All – Please, please be skeptical when you see a sensational health headline. And please don’t share articles online unless you have good reasons to believe the content is true. (Quick and Dirty Tips)
• Is your child old enough to cut herbs? Crack eggs? Grate cheese? An age-by-age guide. – How fun! (Washington Post)
• Dozens sickened in new multistate salmonella outbreak, this time traced to pre-cut melons – Ugh. This is a pretty big outbreak including Whole Foods, Costco and Walmart, so be careful. Pre-cut fresh produce doesn’t seem worth the risk anymore. (Washington Post)
• Will Probiotics Ever Live Up to the Hype? – Most people view probiotics and the microbiome way too simplistically. There isn’t just a pill that’ll fix your gut. You still need to eat lots of vegetables and fiber, avoid processed foods, etc. But probiotics do have the potential to help. (The Atlantic)
• Sprouted Brown Rice & Parsley Tossed Salad – I’d use cherries instead of grapes this time of year, but looks delish. (Spice and Sprout)

What inspired you this week?