The Brain in Your Kitchen

Book excerpt: Every day, we're faced with choices about what to eat, wear, and purchase. Blinded by a tsunami of information—some good, some bad, some intentionally misleading—often our brains are too overwhelmed to examine all the details. So how do we know we're making the best decisions for us? Author and science journalist David DiSalvo asks what's best for our brains instead. The Brain in Your Kitchen sifts through the good and bad information on the things we buy, the foods we eat, and the medicines we take. Using findings from cutting-edge science, DiSalvo divulges terrifically useful and little-known facts—each grounded in credible research—about everything from how gluten to cats affect your brain. Learn how we can trick our minds into helping us lose weight, what placebos are costing us big bucks with no results, and what caffeine is actually doing inside your head to give you that extra pep. Disalvo cuts through frantic media sensation and consumer marketplace babble and gives you the knowledge to distinguish hyperbole from truth so you're ready next time you sit down for dinner.