FOR THE LOVE OF FOOD: Michael Pollan talks shrooms, fish more toxic than ever, and perfect poached eggs

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

This week Michael Pollan talks shrooms, fish more toxic than ever, and perfect poached eggs.

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Links of the week

• Michael Pollan — Exploring The New Science of Psychedelics – Fascinating conversation between two of my favorite thinkers on an incredibly important topic. Research into psychedelic drugs is consistently showing that 1-2 sessions (controlled and guided, obviously) can have profound beneficial effects on a number of mental health conditions, as well as ending addictive behavior. Behavior change is really hard, and anything with this much potential and so few risks and side effects deserves further examination. (The Tim Ferriss Show)
• Starting Monday, calorie counts on menus are going to be mandatory – This is a good read if for no other reason than it reminds you that a stupid turkey sandwich can have 700 calories. (Vox)
• Mercury rising: Are the fish we eat toxic? – This is so depressing I don’t even know what to say. I’ll simply remind you that environmental mercury contamination comes from burning coal. (ScienceDaily)
• The Belly Fat Battle – Terrible headline, but this article is actually an interesting examination of the potential causes of middle age waist expansion. Visceral fat is uniquely dangerous, but it still isn’t exactly clear why that is. (Scientific American)
• The Last Conversation You’ll Need to Have on Eating Right: The Follow-ups – Ironically, a follow up on the previous article that claimed to answer all your questions about nutrition. For the record, I disagree with them about hard vs soft cheese (e.g. vitamin K2) and La Croix (I don’t touch the stuff because it comes in plastic-lined cans). Other than that the advice is pretty ok. (Grub Street)
• Romaine Riddle: Why the E. Coli Outbreak Eludes Food Investigators – More follow up on the romaine lettuce outbreak and why it has been so hard to trace the source of contamination. If you hope to avoid these kinds of outbreaks it helps to know what the risk factors are and how regulations may help. (NY Times)
• America’s largest pork producer pledged to make its meat more humane. An investigation says it didn’t. – Oof. This one is hard to read. However I feel very strongly that if you choose to eat meat you should know what the true cost is to get it on your plate. Eat with your eyes open. (Vox)
• How a Low-Carb Diet Might Aid People With Type 1 Diabetes – I don’t often share articles about specific medical conditions that aren’t caused by lifestyle factors, but this new study is so surprising and the approach so simple I’m making an exception. (NY Times)
• Working together key to weight loss in relationships – Different types of relationships create different challenges for getting healthy. Unsurprisingly, the person you spend the most time with has a profound impact on your ability to make change. (ScienceDaily)
• This Is The Chillest, Easiest Way to Poach An Egg – Mind. Blown. (Lifehacker)

What inspired you this week?