The FREAK-est Links
New book advocates following your gut. U.S. obesity rates keep on climbing. (Earlier) Ways to avoid hospital-transmitted infections. (Earlier) Red Lobster launches health-conscious Web site. (Earlier)…
New book advocates following your gut. U.S. obesity rates keep on climbing. (Earlier) Ways to avoid hospital-transmitted infections. (Earlier) Red Lobster launches health-conscious Web site. (Earlier)…
…choices and away from the obesity-causing junk food. Just and Wansink point out that administrators often face a difficult choice between nutritious meals and the bottom line: It may be…
…new digital news enterprises to bloom as newspapers die. Q. How do you think the recession will affect major societal issues, like, say, the U.S. obesity epidemic? A. Well, the…
…shed 40 pounds with a diet he crafted through years of meticulous self-experimentation. This week’s column digs into the risks and benefits of using surgery to combat obesity. This blog…
Prenatal lead exposure linked to male obesity. (Earlier) Researchers test Iraqi teenagers’ self-esteem. Cities in Japan, Sardinia, California boast the world’s longest-living populations. Helvetica makes list of “Top Ten new…
…roots of the obesity epidemic. He also argues for a style of capitalism and politics that at this moment seems like a fantasy. What does he know that we don’t?…
A recent Lancet article argued that obesity is contributing to global warming because the obese consume more calories. Since making food releases carbon, that means an obese person, on average,…
Some time ago, we wondered if New York City’s new law requiring certain restaurants to post calorie counts might provide good material for academic researchers who care about obesity. The…
…obesity. True, billions of dollars have been made selling all sorts of diet and exercise and weight-loss products, but perhaps the best solution is the free one: eat a bit…
…says the treat poses at least as much a threat to health as alcohol does in the U.K., and should be taxed accordingly. “Obesity is a mushrooming problem. We are…
We’ve noted before that the U.S. decline in smoking (among teens as well as adults) has likely contributed to the rise in obesity. In a new working paper (gated), John…
(Photo: ebru) The other day, Levitt and I participated in a brainstorming session on how to fight childhood obesity, sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. (FWIW, we recorded the…
A new N.B.E.R. working paper finds a link between health insurance and obesity, and suggests that the better insured you are, the fatter you’re likely to be. We already knew…
…and, in the end, quite helpful. We talked about the obesity “epidemic,” and the state of weight in his profession: “Generally, the world of radio tends to attract a glasses-wearing,…
Virgin to become the first airline to test biofuels. (Earlier) The “6 degrees of separation” theory fades under pressure. Is obesity really so bad? Sex workers expect business boom from…
Could a lack of sleep help explain why some people get much sicker than others?
It’s a surprisingly hard question to answer. Bapu talks with a health economist about a natural experiment that led to some unexpected findings….
Also: Which professions have the happiest people?…
It’s hard to know whether the benefits of hiring a celebrity are worth the risk. We dig into one gruesome story of an endorsement gone wrong, and find a surprising…
Physician Peter Attia returns to the show to talk about the science of longevity — which focuses not only on extending life but on maintaining good health into old age….
Educational messaging looks good on paper but kids don’t respond to it — and adults aren’t much better.
Taxes on alcohol and tobacco promise to make people healthier and raise public funds. But can they backfire? Bapu Jena looks at the complicated economics of sin taxes….
There is strong evidence that exercise is wildly beneficial. There is even stronger evidence that most people hate to exercise. So if a pill could mimic the effects of working…
That’s what some health officials are saying, but the data aren’t so clear. We look into what’s known (and not known) about the prevalence and effects of loneliness — including…
There is strong evidence that exercise is wildly beneficial. There is even stronger evidence that most people hate to exercise. So if a pill could mimic the effects of working…
That’s what some health officials are saying, but the data aren’t so clear. We look into what’s known (and not known) about the prevalence and effects of loneliness — including…
Also: which professions have the happiest people?…
We often look to other countries for smart policies on education, healthcare, infrastructure, etc. But can a smart policy be simply transplanted into a country as culturally unusual (and as…
The “Power of Poop”: Since the beginning of civilization, we’ve thought that human waste was worthless at best, and often dangerous. What if we were wrong?…
