Better Not Burn Your Toast: The Science of Food and Health

Discover why some people see red over red food dyes, why Sherlock Holmes was interested in jellyfish, why King George III was plagued with purple urine, and why phrenology is a pseudoscience. You will learn about the links between the Pope, Lionel Messi, and yerba mate, Harry Potter and the mandrake root, and how Bicycle Day came to commemorate the first use of LSD. Have you ever wondered whether negative ions have positive effects, if memory supplements work, if performance-enhancing supplements really enhance performance, or if taurine in Red Bull is a lot of bull? Look no further. Are you confused about ultra-processed foods, free radicals, calcium propionate in your daily bread, endocrine disruptors, preservatives, rejuvenation, aspartame, Ozempic, Oxycontin, or whether you can eat to beat disease? You’ve come to the right place.

You will also find out why Woody Allen’s “orgasmatron” in Sleeper was a parody of an actual device created by Wilhelm Reich, how time-restricted eating works, why kimchi traveled to outer space, and where not to stick a magnesium rod. Then, of course, you will also discover why you should not burn your toast!