I’m so exhausted from my week — with much more dissertation work to do today — so I can’t possibly write a substantial post of any kind on health issues. So instead, I’m just going to refer you to some good readings, enough to keep you well-occupied for a few hours, if you like. Let’s start with some delights from Gary Taubes:

• What if It’s All Been a Big Fat Lie? by Gary Taubes, New York Times Magazine, July 2002. The controversial article that started it all. (For the story behind the story, see Inside the Story.)

• Do We Really Know What Makes Us Healthy? by Gary Taubes, New York Times Magazine, September 2007. A detailed examination of why medical studies often yield conflicting results — and how you can sort through the mess.
• We can’t work it out by Gary Taubes, The Observer, October 2007. Will exercise help you lose weight? Likely not. (My own experience supports this view: I’ve only been able to lose weight in periods when I cut down my exercise to mere “maintenance” mode.)
• “Big Fat Lies” by Gary Taubes, Lecture to the Stevens Institute of Technolocy, February 2008. (I’ve not watched this video yet.)
• All of the above sources are merely a teaser for Gary Taubes’ excellent book Good Calories, Bad Calories. If you’re interested in the science of nutrition, I cannot recommend it highly enough.

And now for some goodies from Stephan of Whole Health Source:

• Stephan recently ran a good series of posts on the few tests of paleolithic diets: Paleolithic Diet Clinical Trials, Paleolithic Diet Clinical Trials Part II, and One Last Thought.

• Last month, Stephan did a mind-blowing series on omega-3 and omega-6 fats: Vegetable Oil and Homicide, The Omega Ratio, Omega-3 Fats and Brain Development, Omega Fats and Cardiovascular Disease, and A Practical Approach to Omega Fats.

And finally, some good posts from Dr. Eades of “ProteinPower”:

• Changing dietary trends and the obesity epidemic explains why people can often eat dessert, even after stuffing themselves to the brim with their meal.

• Thermodynamics and weight loss explains why the second law of thermodynamics doesn’t support the view that all calories are the same.
• Metabolism and ketosis explains what ketones are. Ketosis cleans our cells explains how keytones de-junk your cells.
• Carbohydrates are addictive discusses the research suggesting that a low-carb diet might stop the growth of cancerous tumors.

That’s all for today. Happy reading!