Hello friends. It has been so long, but I am thrilled to be back and introduce you to The Darya Rose Show. I’ve taken a pretty long break from podcasting to start a family. And I’m re-emerging now in a world that is nearly unrecognizable compared to the one where I hosted a show called Foodist.

Not only am I now a mother––and shout out to all you parents out there dealing with young kids during a pandemic, good times––but the social, economic and physical changes that have taken place in the world have caused me to really reevaluate my role as an educator and content creator. So I’ve decided to do something a bit different moving forward.

Obviously personal health and habit building and all those other fun things you normally know me for will always be passions of mine, and certainly will not disappear from my discussions. But these days I’m finding myself pondering broader questions about how to navigate this new world.

I’m launching The Darya Rose Show  to invite you, to explore these life questions with me.

Now these first few episodes tackle a big question, which is how do we know what’s true? Somehow this question has gotten incredibly muddy in the past few years, and I’d like to highlight some of the ways we can get back on track and rediscover a common reality we can all agree upon.

Future shows we’ll tackle things like vaccines, how to get a solid night’s sleep. I personally have been waking up in the middle of the night and not able to fall back asleep and it’s the worst thing ever, but I’ve actually come up with a lot of solutions for that, that I’m really excited to share with you.

And we’ll even look at more mundane questions, like how to choose a sunscreen. And while that sounds simple, I was shocked to learn the number of different ingredients that are used in various sunscreens. And then even the ones I thought were the safest can be more risky for children than adults. Equally as important for me is how these different ingredients impact the planet and the health of the coral reefs, which are being devastated across the world by sunscreens leaching into the ocean.

So my goal for the show is to give you 360 degree views of issues like these that are impacting my life and thinking in the moment. Sometimes this will mean several consecutive episodes and guests on a single subject. Sometimes one show may be sufficient to do a topic justice.

What’s fun is the methodology I use to find answers hasn’t changed. If I’m wondering how to tackle a new problem, I do a ton of reading and research, focusing on primary scientific literature whenever possible. I ask experts I trust for their opinions, and I try things out for myself to see what works in the real world. Because at the end of the day, finding practical solutions to problems big and small is what really matters to me.

The objective will always be to integrate fact-based knowledge with the practical considerations of real life, so that you can make decisions, confidently, solve whatever issues you’re facing today, and feel good about living a life aligned with your values.

Thanks for listening, and I hope you’ll join me.

Subscribe to The Darya Rose Show using your favorite podcasting app.

My TEDxSalem talk is live! In it I describe what I believe are the three most essential psychological strategies you need to build better habits and stop dieting for good.

And since I know you’re curious, I was 8 months pregnant and this was shot just days before the eternal misery of the third trimester really set in.

Nova Joy Rose was born February 19, and we’re both doing great.

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

Just a heads up that this will be my last FTLOF post for a couple of months, as I’m going back on maternity leave. You can keep up with the baby rosebuds on Instagram @daryarose.

This week decide earlier to make healthier choices, more adults getting food allergies, and what “natural flavors” really means.

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

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.

Links of the week

• Are ‘Natural Flavors’ Really Natural? – Personally I can taste the phoniness of these “natural flavors” from a mile away. Once your palate is acclimated to the flavors of Real Food, it’s nearly impossible to go back. Yuck. (NY Times)
• Looking to choose a healthy post-workout snack? Decide early, study says – THIS. And I believe the best time to decide is as soon as you realized your last effort didn’t turn out as you hoped. Overeat at your lunch meeting? Decide now to have a more satisfying breakfast before work. Skip your morning workout because you were too tired? Decide now to go to sleep half hour earlier to see if it helps. (ScienceDaily)
• Drinking While Pregnant: An Inconvenient Truth – Womp womp. (NY times)
• Montana Ranchers are Kicking Up Dust to Bring Back Country of Origin Labels on Meat – This is very important. (Civil Eats)
• The Practice of Letting Go – Really good advice. (Zen Habits)
• Doctors Surprised by Scope of Adult-Onset Food Allergies – I feel like I’ve noticed this as well. It’s hard not to suspect all the additional environmental toxins and chronic inflammation (from diet and lifestyle) that most of us are exposed to these days. (WSJ)
• Schools in England Introduce a New Subject: Mindfulness – Our kids are going to be so much better at coping with the world than we are. (NY Times)
• Want healthier eating habits? Start with a workout – Healthy habits beget healthy habits. (ScienceDaily)
• Can You Get Too Much Exercise? What the Heart Tells Us – Super interesting. (NY Times)
• There is a reason apps make it so fun to track your health – Good to be aware of what goes on behind the scenes. (The Outline)

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

This week Big Food and EU eliminate plastics and waste, rubber and wood found in Tyson nuggets, and portion control still wins the weight loss game.

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

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.

Links of the week

• A coalition of giant brands is about to change how we shop forever, with a new zero-waste platform – This is amazing. I so hope it succeeds. (Fast Company)
• The End Of Plastic Cutlery, Plates And Straws: EU Market Says Goodbye To Single-Use Plastic Products – The EU is also making some big changes to cut back on plastic waste. Amen. (Forbes)
• Rubber and Wood in Chicken Nuggets: Why 120,000 Pounds Were Recalled – LOL I thought rubber and wood were what nuggets were made out of anyway. Seriously though, this is why you should avoid processed and industrial food. (NY Times)
• There’s Arsenic And Lead In Many Brands Of Fruit Juice. Should You Be Concerned? – It’s extra dangerous for children and pregnant women (aka developing nervous systems). (NPR)
• For Real Weight Control, Try Portion Control – Good reminder. (NY Times)
• Who decided we should all take 10,000 steps a day, anyway? – In case you were wondering. Personally I use it as a benchmark because personal experience has shown me that it’s effective. (Washington Post)
• Germs in Your Gut Are Talking to Your Brain. Scientists Want to Know What They’re Saying. – So interesting. (NY Times)
• Cleaning New York’s filthy harbor with one billion oysters – This makes me so happy. (CNN)
• First Mood, Then Weight (#BellLetsTalk) – Make sure you know your order of operations. (Weighty Matters)
• Beet, Fennel, & Radicchio Salad with Feta & Pine Nuts – Did I mention I love winter salads? (Yummy Beet)

What inspired you this week?

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

This week Canada’s new food guide shuns industry, sunscreen is the new margarine, and exercise “snacks” improve fitness.

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

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.

Links of the week

• Canada’s new food guide is loyal to science, not the food industry – Hey guess what?? The new Canadian food guide that’s receiving tons of praise is pretty much a clone of the Foodist Plate. Amazing what happens when you take industry influence out of dietary guidelines and base it on science. (Treehugger)
• Is Sunscreen the New Margarine? – A lot of this is dead on. I don’t like that he ignores that UV exposure definitely contributes to skin aging, but the relationship between sunscreen and melanoma isn’t as straightforward as you’d think. (Outdoor Online)
• How Exercise May Help Keep Our Memory Sharp – So interesting. I’m excited to see where research on irisin leads. (NY Times)
• Even a 20-Second Exercise ‘Snack’ Can Improve Fitness – Exercise snacks! I’m actually really impressed at the degree of improvement in aerobic fitness from such a brief intervention (5 percent). Remember that there isn’t an amount of exercise that’s so small it’s “not worth it.” Do what you can and build from there. (NY Times)
• Diet and food production must radically change to save planet – Wow. I hope governments around the world (especially the US) start to acknowledge and implement policies to address this reality soon. (ScienceDaily)
• A Simple Brown Rice Sushi Bowl – This vegetarian “sushi” bowl is a beautiful, simple and elegant meal or substantial snack. Love these flavors. (101 Cookbooks)
• Teri’s Sliced Orange Salad with Arugula, Fennel & Shaved Parmesan – I’m a big fan of winter salads. Not usually as the main course, but as a starter. Personally I’d use the wonderfully bitter chicories that are easy to find this time of year rather than arugula, but both are delicious. (Alexandra’s Kitchen)

What inspired you this week?

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

This week how to stop avoiding exercise, GMO is now “bioengineered” at the USDA, and the FDA resumes limited food inspections.

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

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.

Links of the week

• From Couch Potato To Fitness Buff: How I Learned To Love Exercise – This story reminds me of my own so much. A reframe is so powerful. (NPR)
• U.S. lettuce industry, wary of E. coli, wants FDA back on the job – Same. Apparently some inspections have resumed, but this ridiculous shutdown is affecting all of our safety. (Washington Post)
• Goodbye GMO, Hello Bioengineered: USDA publishes labeling rules – LOL. (Food Politics)
• Daily Movement — Even Household Chores — May Boost Brain Health In Elderly – Doing stuff is also more fun than not doing stuff. (NPR)
• Fasting diets are going mainstream — ahead of the science. Here’s why. – Good summary of the state of the fasting research. Please note that I do not recommend fasting for anyone with a history of chronic dieting (unless you have a specific medical need, like cancer therapy). (Vox)
• How to get the most out of your exercise time, according to science – A similar summary on the science behind High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). (Vox)
• Are All Calories the Same? – Take all of Mark’s science analysis with a grain of salt (he doesn’t have any real training and cherry picks studies), but I like the way he stops and makes you think here about all the factors that are involved in how you metabolize a specific meal. (Mark’s Daily Apple)
• The Weight I Carry – A very profound essay on what it’s like to be morbidly obese. Very much worth the read. (The Atlantic)
• How workout buddies can help stave off loneliness – What a great idea! I imagine this would be particularly beneficial for senior groups. (Washington Post)
• Dorie Greenspan’s Spatchcock Chicken with Za’atar & Lemon – I’ve never tried to spatchcock a chicken, but this makes it seem extremely doable. (Alexandra’s Kitchen)

What inspired you this week?

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.

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

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.

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?

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

This week how genetic tests impact your motivation, moralizing food linked to weight regain, and Whole Foods packaging linked to cancer.

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

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.

Links of the week

• What Happens When You’re Convinced You Have Bad Genes – Looks like DNA tests can prime you to have a fixed mindset about your health. Don’t fall for it. (The Atlantic)
• Why People Wait 10 Days to Do Something That Takes 10 Minutes – Another big issue in changing health behaviors is delayed action/procrastination. It’s a common occurrence, but you can get past it. (The Atlantic)
• Successful Weight Management May Depend on the Embrace of Imperfection – Another big one that I’ve discussed a lot here at Summer Tomato is moral licensing. Looks like a new study has quantified how much this tendency is likely to impact weight regain. Hint: it’s not good. (Weighty Matters)
• Whole Foods Ranked Worst on Cancer-Linked Package Chemicals – Props to Whole Foods for addressing this immediately. Still it is disappointing to know that compostable packaging can be linked to cancer. Hoping the packaging industry figures this issue out soon. (Bloomberg)
• The fat-burning heart-rate zone is a myth: How exercise and weight loss really work – Yep. (Washington Post)
• This Emotion Can Help You Eat Healthier – Love this. (Greater Good Magazine)
• Your ‘grass-fed’ beef may have not have come from a cow grazing in a pasture. Here’s why. – This article has been stressing some people out. My advice: find a good butcher you trust that knows the farms. The next best thing is using those animal welfare ratings Whole Foods posts at their meat counter. (Washington Post)
• Scant Evidence Behind the Advice About Salt – I love science, but it makes some topics way too complicated for a normal person to make realistic decisions. Here’s what you need to know: 75-80% of the sodium you eat comes from processed foods. Processed foods are bad for you for a zillion reasons. Avoid processed foods and cook for yourself, and you can use as much salt as you need to make your food taste good. (NY Times)
• ‘The Worst I’ve Ever Seen It’: Lean Stone Crab Season Follows Red Tide in Florida – You can expect a lot more stories like this in the coming years. It’s such a tragedy. (NY Times)
• Golden Beet Hummus – A less calorie-dense and more nutrient-dense take on one of my favorite snacks. (101 Cookbooks)

What inspired you this week?

Dr. Rhonda Patrick is a scientist who has done extensive research on aging, cancer and nutrition. She has a Ph.D. in biomedical science from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center and St. Jude’s children’s Research
Hospital in Memphis TN, a bachelor’s of science degree in biochemistry/chemistry from the University of California San Diego and has trained as a postdoc at the Children’s Hospital Oakland Research Institute with Dr. Bruce Ames. Her research on the role of insulin signaling in protein misfolding commonly found in neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease, was conducted at the prestigious Salk Institute for Biological Sciences.

Rhonda’s podcast and website, both called Found My Fitness, discuss topics such as the role of micronutrient deficiencies in diseases of aging, the benefits of exposing the body to hormetic stressors such as exercise, fasting, sauna use or various forms of cold exposure, and the importance of mindfulness, stress reduction and sleep on health.

In this episode we discuss Rhonda’s new publication on the role of the APOE4 gene in Alzheimer’s Disease, and why eating fish but not taking fish oil DHA supplements help slow the progression of the disease for carriers. We also touch on how we both approach healthy pregnancies and Rhonda’s personal nutrition strategies.

Related Links:

iWi Algae-based omega-3 phospholipids  – fact sheet

Listen:

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Show details (links don’t work on mobile devices): 

3:21 – How Rhonda helped Darya get pregnant the first time.

6:55 – Apparently, daily sauna use is not a good form of birth control.

9:21 – The APOE-4 gene––what it is and why it matters.

18:42 – Why getting good sleep is crucial for lowering an APOE-4 gene carrier’s risk for developing Alzheimer’s.

21:30 – Rhonda’s new publication explains how omega-3 DHA is transmitted to the brain differently in people who carry this gene.

24:08 – Eating fish versus taking fish oil DHA supplements.

27:26 – Why caviar isn’t just for special occasions.

31:07 – Why supplement companies have to distill fish oil, the downside of purified fish oil and what Rhonda suggests instead.

34:30 – It’s OK to eat fish roe when you are pregnant, just find a trusted source.

36:57 – How much fish should I be consuming on a weekly basis?

38:07 – An alternative source of omega-3 DHA for vegetarians.

41:35 – How to find out if you are a APOE-4 gene carrier.

45:27 – Engage in this type of exercise to lower your risk of Alzheimer’s, improve deep sleep and keep your brain healthy.

46:43 – How accurate is the Oura Ring for tracking sleep? + The difference between REM sleep and deep sleep.

49:26 – Rhonda’s nutrition strategy.

53:23 – Why she chooses Vital Choice Salmon….

54:15 – and focuses on certain nutrients more than others.

57:30 – Why Darya is skeptical of functional foods.

58:59 – Things to avoid during pregnancy.

1:03:21 – Is it safe to consume detoxifying foods when you are pregnant?

1:06:13 – Find Dr. Rhonda Patrick on the Found My Fitness podcast, www.foundmyfitness.com and @foundmyfitness on social media.

Welcome to Friday’s For The Love of Food, Summer Tomato’s weekly link roundup. A few extra this week since I missed last week.

This week how to keep your heart 30 yrs younger, hunger induces risky eating behavior, and climate change makes oysters more dangerous.

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

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.

Links of the week

• Two Surprising Ways to Make Your Holidays Less Stressful – Maybe the best advice you’ll read all season. (Greater Good Magazine)
• What We Know About Diet and Weight Loss – There is actually some stuff we know, even if there’s still a lot we don’t. (NY Times)
• Exercise Wins: Fit Seniors Can Have Hearts That Look 30 Years Younger – Exercise is so good in so many ways. Don’t find time, make time to do it. (NPR)
• Is Aerobic Exercise the Key to Successful Aging? – Keep in mind this is only one reason. Strength training and has a separate set of benefits you also need. (NY Times)
• What a Hungry Snail Reveals About YourGrocery Store Breakdowns – This must explain why dieters can so frequently be seen eating protein bars. (NY Times)
• How Pink Salt Took Over Millennial Kitchens – This article really annoys me since it overlooks the one reason I stopped cooking with sea salt and switched to Himalayan salts a few years ago: almost all sea salts contain nanoparticles of plastic, while the ancient salt reserves do not. (The Atlantic)
• As Climate Changes, Is Eating Raw Oysters Getting Riskier? – We touch on this in my recent podcast with Bill Marler about food safety. Personally I don’t eat Gulf oysters ever. (NPR)
• How to Prevent Nasty Stomach Bugs This Winter? More Bleach. – Also this. (NY Times)
• New Archive Reveals How the Food Industry Mimics Big Tobacco to Suppress Science, Shape Public Opinion – Wow. (Civil Eats)
• Already a Climate Change Leader, California Takes on Food Waste – Recent innovations in California are encouraging. (Civil Eats)
• A New Connection between the Gut and Brain – Interesting link between salt and stroke that skips the blood pressure connection. (Scientific American)
• Trump Administration Rolls Back Obama-Era Rules for School Lunches  – Le sigh. (NY Times)
• Farro and White Bean Vegetable Soup – Perfect winter food. (Food Fitness Fresh Air)

What inspired you this week?