February 20, 2026 • 40 mins
We have ZERO intention of eating less food! But if you had to pare down your pantry to the bare minimum, what are the only foods you'd need to survive? Is an all-potato diet healthy? And did Steve Jobs' strange diet affect his business decisions? Plus, Will and Mango discuss the Woodstock for fruit lovers and find out why the elderberry might be the most overlooked berry. Featuring Spudfit.com's Andrew Taylor.
This episode originally aired on November 1, 2017.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Guess what, mango? What's that?
Speaker 2 (00:01):
Will?
Speaker 3 (00:02):
Do you hear about this super pizza they invented in
England a couple of years ago.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
I was just reading about it again.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
No, but I did get a note from a very
sweet listener asking me to stop using the word super
so much, and I was thinking for today's episode, I
just used the word top notch instead. So tell me
about this top notch pizza.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
That's a good word, manco Well, super pizza was developed
at Glasgow University and it's this frozen pizza that has
seaweed baked into the crust and then the sauce is
boosted with nutrients. And the whole idea is that, because
it has a third of your daily vitamins and minerals,
you could actually eat pizza for breakfast, lunch and dinner
and be somewhat healthy.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
That's pretty cool. But how's it taste?
Speaker 3 (00:39):
Well, I guess top notch as you might say, now,
I think like pretty good from what I've read online. Anyway,
reading about it made me wonder if you had to
pare your pantry down to the bare minimum, what are
the only foods you'd need to survive? And that's what
today's episode is all about Hey their podcast listeners, Welcome
(01:13):
to Part Time Genius. I'm Will Pearson and as always
I'm joined by my good friend Mangesh hot Ticketter and
sitting behind that soundproof booth baking some tiny but delicious
pastries and his easy bake oven as our producer Tristan McNeil.
Speaker 1 (01:25):
Where did he get that?
Speaker 2 (01:26):
What is that? Tristan? Are those tiny croissants?
Speaker 4 (01:29):
Uh?
Speaker 2 (01:29):
Yeah, listener, those are tiny croissants?
Speaker 1 (01:31):
Won a tiny croissant? That's so good?
Speaker 2 (01:34):
All right?
Speaker 3 (01:34):
Well, for today's show, we decided to do a little
thought experiment. Basically, we want to know if you were
going to limit your daily diet to only a handful
of different foods, ten or five or even just one,
what should you eat?
Speaker 2 (01:47):
Yeah. I was pretty sure the answer is going to
be flaming hot cheetos. But apparently the answer is not
flaming hot Cheetoh. I don't think it is, yeah, because
this really isn't what snacks you couldn't go without, so
much as the stuff you couldn't live without plus three
times Cheetos have. It couldn't be that healthy for you.
Speaker 1 (02:02):
Probably not.
Speaker 3 (02:03):
And you know, I think the idea here is to
concentrate on building the most restricted diet we can, using
foods that are nutritious enough to actually keep you alive.
And along the way, we'll explore the reasons why some
people actually strive for a lack of variety in what
they eat. And it will also take a look at
some of the craziest restrictive diets that people have ever
subjected themselves.
Speaker 2 (02:21):
To, speaking which will also be joined by Andrew Taylor.
He's the Australian man who declared twenty sixteen to be
the Year the Spud and then he commemorated it by
eating nothing but potatoes for three hundred and sixty six days.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
Oh and he chose a leapier to do this.
Speaker 2 (02:34):
Yeah, and now he's written a book called The DIY
Spud Fit Challenge, and it dares readers to change their
relationship with food in order to live a healthier life.
So we'll find out what possessed him to do this
in the first place, and why potatoes, of all things.
Speaker 1 (02:47):
I mean, it's so weird.
Speaker 3 (02:49):
I feel like growing up, potatoes were considered a healthy vegetable,
or at least healthy enough. And then there was the
whole anti car movement and this big push to cut
potatoes out entirely. Now it feels like it's sort of
nudging its way back in.
Speaker 2 (03:02):
I know, it's so weird how these things go back
and forth, like ex are the same way with all
their cholesterol and that debate, and it's just so strange
like that we can't decide to just do this in moderation.
Speaker 3 (03:12):
Yeah, and the strange part is that it almost feels
heretical to be talking about limiting our food selection. I mean,
we've mentioned this before, but Americans have never had such
a huge variety of options as we do today, and
the idea of purposefully removing choices, it kind of runs
counter to most people's thinking.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
Yeah, so I know this isn't food related, but for
a while I was enamored with this idea of having
a daily uniform. My mother in law gave me this
book she was reading about willpower, and in it there's
this argument that you only have so much willpower and
decision making power in a day. And so people like
Obama when he was president, supposedly had someone pick out
his clothes for him, and all of his shirts and
pants wear different colors, but the same style and the size.
(03:51):
He liked the idea being if you're not using your
brain power for any of those smaller decisions, you can
actually save it for making swift, important decisions later in
the day. But I know a number of successful people
who just have one basic lunch they rely on, and
whether that's like a turkey sandwich or a PBNJ.
Speaker 1 (04:08):
Or ramen from downstairs.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
Yeah, and they just eat that every day because something
they like enough but don't have to spend any time
thinking about.
Speaker 3 (04:15):
Yeah, and you know, time and efficiency. That's definitely one
aspect of narrowing your food choices. But another that I've
been thinking about is, you know.
Speaker 1 (04:22):
Space travel.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
How's that?
Speaker 3 (04:23):
Well, according to Pop's side quote, the impetus of a
lot of nutritional science is how do we feed people
in space? So a lot of the effort is on
how to pack more nutritional content into lighter weight foods,
you know, that are easy to carry.
Speaker 2 (04:36):
Well, we'll definitely talk a little bit about food science
and efforts to pack foods with more nutrients. And of
course there's also this trend of monodiets where people eat
from just one food group and even just one particular food.
People do this with bananas or watermelon, or in the
magician Pendulett's case, he did this with potatoes as well,
and it's supposedly to shock his body into weight loss.
Speaker 3 (04:58):
I have to say that it just sounds so miserab,
but I guess they're all sorts of ways to eat
a potato, and he's probably not just eating baked potatoes
all day, at least I hope he's.
Speaker 2 (05:07):
I don't know. I wonder how many people were inspired
by the Martian to do this diet. But when I
first started, you mentioned this topic and this idea of
foods you can't live without. It reminded me of that
German poet and philosopher of Frederick Schiller, and he'd keep
rotting apples in a drawer in his desk, and whenever
he was getting writer's block, he'd open the door to
take a whiff. Supposedly it inspired him to keep writing.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
I never heard that before, I know.
Speaker 2 (05:30):
And then there's like Balls, who had fifty cups of
coffee a day to keep him writing. But do you
have any tricks for writer's block?
Speaker 1 (05:37):
I don't actually think I do.
Speaker 2 (05:39):
What about you, Well, it's not a trick, but I
actually hate writing, so whenever I have to do it.
I often get like a bag of jelly beans as
a treat, just to make the experience seem more fun.
But I know I took us off track. Nutrition has
definitely worn against mono diets, but sometimes that dieting can't
be helped.
Speaker 1 (05:56):
So what do you mean by that?
Speaker 2 (05:58):
Well, it can also be psychological like that. There was
a story a few years ago about that teenage girl
in England who'd been hooked on chicken nuggets. She'd been
downing them since like age two or something, and according
to the report, she'd eat in practically nothing but chicken
nuggets for like fifteen years.
Speaker 1 (06:13):
Oh wow, Yeah, I remember hearing about her.
Speaker 2 (06:15):
I know, and it sounds kind of funny or impressive,
even until one day she passed out and couldn't breathe.
Speaker 3 (06:21):
That's a lot less funny. So she did she have
a heart attack or something.
Speaker 2 (06:24):
No, Apparently she was so malnourished that she had to
receive vitamin and nutrient injections.
Speaker 1 (06:29):
Wow. I mean, it's actually kind of heartbreaking when you
think about it.
Speaker 4 (06:31):
I know.
Speaker 2 (06:32):
And the sadder part is that her mother couldn't even
stop her. Like her words were quote, it breaks my
heart to see her eating those damn nuggets.
Speaker 3 (06:40):
You know, what you're describing sounds way more than just
hankering for chicken nuggets. I mean, it actually sounds more
like compulsive behavior.
Speaker 2 (06:47):
M And in some cases people are like highly selective
about foods they're willing to eat because of food addictions.
But it can also be about food phobias. And in fact,
there was this other British woman who ate only chicken
nuggets for twenty five years.
Speaker 1 (07:00):
She was also British. That's what the Brits and they're nuggets.
Speaker 2 (07:04):
I have no idea, but in this woman's case, she
became so accustomed to eating her favorite food at home
that she developed this serious fear of eating anything else,
like when she put it in her mouth, she'd gaged.
But after visiting a hypnotherapist in London for a single hour,
just an hour, she was totally cured. And she's been
feasting on a non nugget diet ever since.
Speaker 3 (07:25):
I'm so happy she's off the nuggets, all right, So
this is obvious, but in general, it sounds like eating
only one kind of food is a.
Speaker 1 (07:31):
Very bad idea.
Speaker 2 (07:32):
I mean, I guess it works for pets. Ruby has
this pet bearded dragon at school that apparently only eats crickets,
and it seems to be doing just fine. But you're right,
I mean, part of the problem is that, like, they're
huge parts of the world population, especially in Africa and Asia,
and they survive on a diet that's made up almost
entirely of rice. So it's not really by choice. And
(07:53):
in fact, according to a report from the Etch University
in Zurich and I'm playing this on now, quote, nearly
every second person in the world eats primarily rice to
meet the daily calorie need. A meal of rice stops
the hunger, but contains only very few or none of
the essential micronutrients. So, I mean, the good news is
that researchers have had lots of success with creating genetically
(08:15):
modified multi nutrient rice to help fight malnutrition, especially in
those rice dependent regions.
Speaker 3 (08:21):
You know, I know they're economic and political implications of
the genetically modified food stuff, but it is kind of
amazing that you can just infuse all these nutrients into
rice and solve this big problem. Of course, whether someone
chooses a restricted diet or has it thrust upon them,
that lack of dinner table variety poses other problems. You know,
aside from the nutrition of it all, and mainly that
(08:44):
just makes meals seem so boring. Really yeah, I mean
that's my biggest gripe with all this, and that's not
just our opinion. I mean, humans actually experience a phenomenon
called sensory specific satiety, and that's when we keep eating
the same thing.
Speaker 2 (08:57):
So I've never heard of that. What's that mean?
Speaker 1 (08:59):
You know?
Speaker 3 (08:59):
So basically, the more you eat of a specific food,
the less appetizing it gets and the less you can
stand the thought of eating it.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
Which it explains why kids always complain when they're full
midway through dinner, but then miraculously find more room in
their stomachs when dessert rolls around.
Speaker 3 (09:14):
That's exactly what's happening there. And researchers think sensory specific
say should he might be an evolutionary trade. You know,
it acts as the body's way of telling us to
eat something different in order to avoid that malnutrition. But
of course you don't have to stick to just a
single food item to suffer this. The effects of this
even you know, limiting yourself to one food group can
be unhealthy, and I mean, just look at the fruitarians
(09:35):
out there.
Speaker 2 (09:36):
So I grew up vegetarian, but I remember when I
heard about fruitarians thinking that feels like a step too far.
Speaker 1 (09:42):
I would agree with that.
Speaker 3 (09:44):
Well, it's definitely a more extreme form of vegetarianism. And
the idea is that seventy five percent or more of
your daily food intake should be fresh fruit and usually
eat and raw and health and wellness bloggers have helped
popularize the diet in recent years, so much so that
hundreds of like mind eaters now gather every year in
New York for the Woodstock Fruit Festival. The other Woodstock,
(10:05):
I think it's probably just a little bit different than
they get the other Woodstock. So it's this week long
event where fruitarians gather to mingle with other fruitarians, they
attend lectures and gorge themselves on the all you can
eat fruit and vegetable buffet, you know, and that's what
they get for their twelve hundred dollars tickets.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
Yeah, it's crazy.
Speaker 3 (10:22):
And if you're wondering how much fresh produce it takes
the feed close to one thousand hungry fruitarians for an
entire week, the answer is over one hundred thousand pounds.
Speaker 2 (10:30):
That's so much fruit, so wasn't Steve Jobs a fruitarian?
I feel like I read that somewhere. And also that
he smelled terrible. I don't know if that was because
of how his body reacted to the fruits or because
he didn't use any deodorants.
Speaker 3 (10:43):
Well, I can't confirm why he smelled, but Jobs was
probably the most famous fruitarian in the world, and he
kept the strict vegan diet for most of his life,
went through stints along the way where he would only
drink smoothies and eat raw fruit.
Speaker 1 (10:57):
Just that kind of strict diet.
Speaker 2 (10:59):
And I guess it all makes sense in hindsight, right,
Like it's right there in the company name.
Speaker 3 (11:04):
Well, you may be kidding about this, but it's actually true.
So Jobs came up with the name Apple Computers during
one of his fruitarian phases.
Speaker 1 (11:12):
Yeah, it says it.
Speaker 3 (11:13):
In his biography, he wrote, I had just come back
from the Apple farm. It sounded fun, spirited and not intimidating.
Apple took the edge off the word computer.
Speaker 2 (11:22):
That's so crazy, Like I always just assumed that Apple
was a reference to Isaac Newton. Yeah, although didn't all
that fruit actually wind up contributing to Steve Jobs's illness. Like,
I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that there's a higher
risk of pancreatic cancer if you consume a lot of
fruits and juices.
Speaker 3 (11:37):
Well, some studies have definitely shown a strong link, but
of course there's no real way of knowing what brought
on Steve's illness, and diet can definitely play a role,
but it's hardly the deciding factor with something like cancer.
That said, when Ashton Kutcher took on the role of
Steve Jobs for that biopic, kutchr right here to a
fruitarian diet for about a month as a way of
getting into character, but apparently it.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
Was a disaster.
Speaker 3 (12:00):
He end up being rushed to the hospital with stomach pains,
you know, just a couple days before filming began, and
the test found that his pancreas levels were way off
what they should have been, which really is kind of
frightening given how Jobs passed away.
Speaker 2 (12:12):
And it's kind of counterintuitive, right, like to think of
something we equate with such health being bad for you.
I guess it's just another win for like boring old moderation.
Speaker 3 (12:21):
Yeah, you know, you're definitely not going to find most
doctors or dieticians that recommend you take up fruitarianism or
any other highly restrictive diet.
Speaker 1 (12:29):
And a good general.
Speaker 3 (12:30):
Rule of thumb for diets is that you know, if
it's making you sick, it's probably a bad diet.
Speaker 2 (12:34):
That's great advice. But vegetarians square off fish and meat,
and they tend to be pretty healthy in general. How
come we can get away with dodging some food groups.
Speaker 1 (12:43):
But not others.
Speaker 3 (12:44):
We tend to aim for varied diets because that gives
us a better chance of getting all the different nutrients
we need to help our bodies function properly, and cutting
out whole food groups lessons that likelihood to different degrees.
So eliminating meat is one thing. I mean, you can
make up the protein other ways, but eliminating everything except me, honestly,
that would be about as dangerous as the all fruit diet.
Speaker 2 (13:07):
Well, we should definitely get into what ten foods we'd
take into space or to a desert island. But now
seems like a good time to get Andrew Taylor on
the line and see if we can figure out how
he beat the odds and managed to survive and even
thrive on his all potato diet.
Speaker 3 (13:28):
So Mengo I know today we're talking about limiting diets
to ten foods, and what would those ten foods be
if that's all we could choose. Well, today's guest took
that to another level. So in twenty sixteen, Andrew Taylor
was struggling with depression and anxiety, and he also weighed
more than he'd ever wait in his life. So he
(13:48):
decided to take matters into his own hands. He took
what you might call a pretty unusual measure, and that
was he decided to eat nothing but potatoes for a year.
I don't know if that's how you've ever decided thought
about approaching weight loss or anything like that, but Andrew Taylor,
welcome the part time Genius.
Speaker 4 (14:05):
Thanks for having me on. I'm excited.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
Yeah, we're thrilled to have you as well. So, Andrew,
you said that you were addicted to food at the time,
and I think I read you wanted to make your
food as boring as possible, so your mind wasn't consumed
by food. Why did you decide on the potato?
Speaker 4 (14:20):
Yeah, that's exactly right. It was an experiment really to
see if dealing with my own food addictions through abstinence
would would be a helpful thing. So, you know, an
alcoholic should quit alcohol, and I thinkured maybe a food
that it should quit food, And obviously we can't quit
food entirely. So I wondered if there was one food
(14:41):
that I could eat and then quit everything else and
getting as close as possible to quitting as you could.
So I chose to potato is after a lot of research.
I spent six weeks studying to figure out what would
be the best food to choose, and potato has just
had the most evidence behind them. Basically, most people know
about the Irish diet. For a couple of centuries, the
(15:04):
Irish entire population ate almost only potatoes, and they were
maintained good fitness and health, and they actually went through
a population zoom, which wouldn't happen if they weren't fit
and healthy. There are tribes around the world, the Papua
New Guinean Highland of tribes of this day eat almost
(15:24):
only sweet potatoes, and there's you know, examples in Japan
and the Okinawan getting nearly all of their calories from
Japanese sweet potatoes and living having a very high rate
of centenarians, that's people that lived till one hundred years old.
Another interesting thing was prisoners of war. I read about
(15:46):
prisoners of war that were fed only potatoes, and they
were the same thing. They were in great health and
in great fitness. And you know, you see photos of
prisoners of war that are totally malnurish, and that's not
these guys. These guys that were fed only potatoes did really,
really well. And another great peace of information I found
(16:09):
was there was a study done in the twenties, in
the late nineteen twenties where a marathon running couple were
supervised by scientists for six months eating only potatoes, and again,
they did really well. They maintained good fitness and health,
and at the end of six months they actually ran
personal best marathons. So there's a lot more information that
(16:29):
I read, but that's the best examples I can give you.
And yeah, once I read all that, fuck a lot
more than my decision was easy. The potatoes were the
obvious choice.
Speaker 3 (16:39):
Wow, that's just fascinating. And clearly you did your homework
on this.
Speaker 1 (16:43):
I am curious.
Speaker 3 (16:44):
Were you consulting a nutritionist at all through the process.
Speaker 4 (16:48):
No, I've got my personal doctor is a dietician as
well qualified dietician and doctor. And once I'd done all
my research and made my decision and decided that that's
what I wanted to do, I went to him and
basically told him what my plan was. And yeah, he
agreed to supervise me and help me, but he didn't
have any input in the initial planning of it.
Speaker 2 (17:09):
Now, and I heard you mentioned sweet potatoes and I
think regular potatoes. Did you mix potatoes or was there
just one tape of potato you were eating on the staus?
Speaker 4 (17:19):
I had all kinds of potatoes. Yeah, I didn't want to.
I wanted to be restrictive, but I didn't want to like,
you know, if I went to the to the store
and they only had one kind of potato available and
it wasn't the kind that I was eating, that was
going to make things hard, you know. So I just
decided to make it all kinds of potatoes, just for
logistical reasons, I felt.
Speaker 2 (17:38):
Yeah, And obviously the potato is pretty versatile to cook.
But what taps of meals did you make and did
your art of cooking the potato evolve as you continued
on this process.
Speaker 4 (17:48):
Yeah, Well, like you briefly mentioned earlier, I figured that
a big part of my problem with food was that
I was relying on it for comfort, enjoyment, emotional support,
things like that at the end of a bad day,
I would get home and want to try to make
myself feel better by eating exciting, interesting food. So the
(18:09):
idea was that I wanted to make my food as
boring as possible so that I'd have to retrain my
brain to get that comfort and enjoyment and emotional support
from other areas of life rather than just from food.
So for that reason, I kept it as boring as
possible on purpose. So ninety five percent of my meals
were probably mashed potato, baked potato, or boiled potato, or
(18:31):
just plain and yeah. Every now and then, maybe once
a fortnite or even once a month, I would do
something a little bit more interesting, like they make some
oven baked chips or some potato waffles or something like that.
But really it was all about learning to be happy
with boring food. And I got this saying, make your
(18:53):
food boring in your life interesting. So rather than spending
my time and energy on trying to make interesting, exciting food,
I just tried to do interesting and exciting things.
Speaker 1 (19:03):
That seems like a great way to approach it.
Speaker 3 (19:05):
I'm curious, are you still eating potatoes now that you've
finished your year of only potatoes?
Speaker 4 (19:10):
Yeah? I had mashed to tatoes and rockets. I think
you got to call it mash potatoes and arugula for breakfast.
Speaker 1 (19:19):
So, Andrew, I'm curious.
Speaker 3 (19:20):
I know, you know, diet experts would probably point out
the lack of protein that you're getting in this diet.
Speaker 1 (19:26):
So, I mean, what would you say to those that that.
Speaker 3 (19:29):
Would be critical of the diet or be concerned that
you might not be getting enough protein or or you know,
other essentials in your diet.
Speaker 4 (19:36):
Yeah, well there are I've had lots of inputs from
that experts around the world since I started doing this.
And it's interesting that potatoes, I guess have a bad
rat that that they're lacking in so much nutrition, but
they've actually I was getting when I was eating in
the potatoes only, I was getting idy clods and then
any grams of protein a diet which is death well
(20:00):
within the recommended daily intake, and it's all the required
essential amino acids getting covered. So yeah, I find it
a little bit disturbing when experts make these claims with
clearly not knowing what they're talking about and potatoes. Everyone
knows they've got a lot of carbohydrates, but they've also
got the protein. Like I mentioned, they've got a small
(20:22):
amount of fat, which is enough to give the body
what it needs, especially when you're carrying extra fat like
I was. And yeah, they've got a really good balance
of all the other vitamins and minerals that we need too.
So you know, my blood tests were getting better through
the whole year, and I was really getting everything I
need from this diet. So yeah, no complaints there.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
So I was curious how your marriage was affected by this,
and what were you spending more time on instead of
just cooking and thinking about food.
Speaker 4 (20:54):
Yeah, my marriage was only affected in positive ways. My
life was really supportive, And before I started this, I
have no stace to say that I gave one hundred
percent of everything I had to being the best husband
I could and being the best father I could. But
you know, I was clinically depressed and one hundred and
twenty pounds more than I am now, and so you know,
(21:17):
one hundred percent then is not the same as one
hundred percent now. So I'm able to give more these days,
which means my marriage, and my life has only been
affected in positive ways. Yeah, so no complaints there, and
my wife was really supported from the start. It's amazing
how much time and space food takes up in your life,
for you know, thinking about it, planning and preparing it,
(21:39):
shopping for it, cooking and cleaning up after it. All that.
You don't realize how much time and effort and energy
that all takes up until you remove it from your life. Basically, So, yeah,
I've added a lot into my life. I'm doing a
lot more exercise, and really I guess most of my
extra time and attention has just gone into having fun
(22:01):
with my loss and my boy. And you know, the
time I'm used to spend thinking about and planning and
all that, it's it's just spent on enjoying myself with them.
I'll wrestle with my little boy and read books and
night jokes and you know, we go walking and playing
in the playground and it's just all the little things
(22:21):
in lost. But just got a little bit of extra
focus for me. That's it's time to say that there's
one particular thing. It's just across the board. I get
a little bit more time for each of the more
positive experiences in loss.
Speaker 2 (22:34):
That's so, that's wonderful.
Speaker 3 (22:36):
Well, Andrew, this has just been fascinating and congratulations on
your success with this. I really admire what you've accomplished.
And as you've put it before, it's it's not about
the potato.
Speaker 1 (22:46):
I mean.
Speaker 3 (22:46):
You can check out Andrew's book, The DIY spud Fit
Challenge on Amazon or visit him online at spudfit dot com. Andrew,
thanks so much for joining us today.
Speaker 4 (22:55):
Thanks so much for having me. It's same fun and yeah,
good luck with everything you guys do.
Speaker 3 (23:12):
You're listening to part Time Genus and we're talking about
how to get by on the least number of foods possible.
Speaker 1 (23:18):
Okay, mango.
Speaker 3 (23:18):
So, after talking to Andrew, I think we're in agreement
that potatoes belong on our list of the only foods
you'll ever need.
Speaker 1 (23:24):
What do you think about this?
Speaker 2 (23:25):
Absolutely? I mean, there are twenty amino acids that humans
need to survive, and while our bodies produce most of
those foras, there are nine essential acids that we only
get from foods we eat. And although most foods supply
at least a couple of those essential aminos, white potatoes
can actually get you there in one go.
Speaker 3 (23:42):
And it's funny that potatoes don't get the coveted superfood
moniker like some of the others do. But I agree
with you on this. I mean, they belong in the card.
And of course white potatoes aren't enough on their own,
since they lack some of the much needed minerals and vitamins.
Speaker 1 (23:56):
You know, we think about vitamins A and E, and.
Speaker 3 (23:58):
As Andrew points out, a true potatotarian, I guess if
that's a word, they would need to add sweet potatoes
to the mix in order to survive long term.
Speaker 2 (24:07):
Yeah, that sweet potato footnote really made me wonder how
the Irish made it through that famine in the eighteen hundreds.
Roughly a third of the population lived mostly on plain
potatoes during those lean years, but I don't think they
were farming sweet potatoes. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (24:20):
I was actually curious about this as well, so I
decided to do a little digging into this. And the
traditional go to meal for the Irish peasants has been potatoes, milk, oats, beans,
and bread. But you know, by the time the famine struck,
most peasants had to sell their milk supplied just to
make rent, so their meals dwindled to potatoes, salted fish,
and oatmeal.
Speaker 2 (24:39):
And that was enough to keep them going for the
most part.
Speaker 1 (24:42):
It actually was.
Speaker 3 (24:43):
I mean that the fish would have been high in
protein and calcium, plus some of the important minerals and vitamins.
But the real saving gray, surprisingly.
Speaker 1 (24:51):
Was actually the oatmeal.
Speaker 3 (24:53):
You see, even on a diet that included both white
and sweet potatoes, you'd still be lacking a crucial mineral.
And I have a heart time pronouncing this mineral, but
it's called molybdenum.
Speaker 2 (25:03):
I've never heard of it.
Speaker 3 (25:04):
Nobody's heard of it, and I don't think anybody can
say it, and it's often called the most important element
you've never heard of. So basically, without molybdenum, your body
would be unable to break down the sul fights and
turn them into usable sources of energy. And since soul
fights are naturally found in so many foods we eat,
including potatoes, most foods would eventually kill you without it,
(25:26):
you know, in order to take care of the sul fights.
But thankfully, we really don't need all that much of
the mineral. In fact, the recommended daily allowance for it
is only about forty five micrograms, so a little oatmeal
actually does the trick.
Speaker 1 (25:39):
And you just ask the Irish.
Speaker 2 (25:41):
Or the Scots for that matter. And while researching, I
found that the cornerstones of a traditional Scottish diet where potatoes, oatmeal,
milk and kale. And now I'm actually thinking they all
should have a place on our list.
Speaker 1 (25:53):
It's a pretty great comba.
Speaker 3 (25:54):
I mean, you could probably get by on those four
a loan if you had to. Though, I think you
could make the case for swapping oats for barley just
because it has the same essential vitamins and minerals as
the other grains, but it also helps to manage those
cholesterol levels.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
Hm.
Speaker 2 (26:09):
Okay, so we've got a pretty good list going here.
We've got white and sweet potatoes as well as oats
or barley, and now we're adding milk and kale. And
of course I'm kind of sick of hearing people talk
about kill these days.
Speaker 1 (26:20):
Yeah, I know, I know what you mean on this.
Speaker 3 (26:22):
So it does kind of live up to its reputation though.
It can help with everything from cardiovascular support to the
fight against things like arthritis or asthma or diabetes, even cancer.
Speaker 1 (26:32):
It's been shown in some studies.
Speaker 3 (26:34):
Plus it's super rich and vitamins and minerals. I know
it said super and.
Speaker 2 (26:39):
Fibers, I know, but I feel like I'm in a
kale ad.
Speaker 1 (26:42):
Well, I mean mango.
Speaker 3 (26:43):
A single one hundred gram serving of kale contains way
more than the recommended daily allowance for let's see here,
vitamin C, vitamin A, and vitamin K, and you can
order some using the coupon code kale dot com slash genius.
Speaker 2 (26:57):
So to be clear, that's a fake coupon code, not
on the kale lobby's doll And while kale has plenty
going for it, it's not without its drawbacks.
Speaker 1 (27:06):
Really, So so why is that?
Speaker 2 (27:07):
Well, rackcale can be extremely tough on the digestive system,
and even cooked kale can lead to hypothyroidism. That's if
you eat too much of it and all that vitamin
K you mentioned. I mean, it's great in moderation, but
too much can lead to the formation of blood clots.
So if you're already dealing with blood clots, or if
you're on a blood thinning medication, you might want to
sub in spinach instead.
Speaker 3 (27:29):
You know, it's weird how it all gets more complicated
than you'd think even with something like kale. But you know,
you know, still milk seems like a safe bet for
the list. If you drink vitamin D fortified whole milk,
your body's getting a lot of what it needs right there.
Speaker 4 (27:43):
You know.
Speaker 3 (27:43):
It's got carbs, protein, potassium, all the essential amino acids,
and of course, as we know, calcium.
Speaker 1 (27:49):
Pretty much the only things missing are fiber. And apparently
it's so hard for me to say molybdenum.
Speaker 3 (27:55):
Yes, exactly, all right, So so grains and greens and
potatoes still need to be on the menu to get
your nutrition fixed.
Speaker 1 (28:02):
But it really is.
Speaker 3 (28:03):
Amazing how close any one of these foods can get
you to a pretty healthy diet.
Speaker 2 (28:07):
It is, and I know we already debunk the monodiet,
but there actually is one food that succeeds at delivering
the complete nutritional package all on its own. And that's
better than an all potato diet and way way better
than the all chicken nugget diet.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
Do you like chicken nuggets for that?
Speaker 3 (28:22):
Now I'm curious, sorry, So what's this amazing mystery food?
Speaker 2 (28:25):
Milk or specifically human milk. So, according to Joanne Hattner,
a nutrition consultant at Stanford and former national spokesperson for
the American Dietetic Association. Mother's milk is a complete food
that means it's calorically sufficient and contains a little bit
of all the vitamins, minerals, and amino acids that we need.
Speaker 3 (28:44):
Yeah, but you're talking about for babies though, right, Like
adults couldn't survive on breast milk, could they.
Speaker 2 (28:49):
Well, that's the catch. Even though all the vital nutrients
are in there, they don't occur in high enough amounts
to sustain an adult. In fact, that that's why we
ultimately add solid foods to infant diet so that we
can eef up the amount of iron and other nutrients
that they receive. And technically, though anyone could survive solely
on mother's milk, provided they were able to you know, source.
Speaker 1 (29:09):
Enough of it, Well, I don't think that's gonna happen,
thank god.
Speaker 2 (29:12):
Yeah, exactly. So our best bed is to stick to
other mammal milks like cows or goats, And if the
milk's for menage or you know, like a yogurt, that's
all the better because the added bacteria can do wonders
for our digestive tracks.
Speaker 1 (29:39):
Welcome back to part time Genius.
Speaker 2 (29:41):
Now.
Speaker 1 (29:41):
Earlier we harped on fruitarians quite a.
Speaker 3 (29:43):
Bit, so I do want to make sure we give
fruit it's doe and include at least one on our list. Now,
the problem is, there's so many tasty fruits and pretty
much all of them are good for you.
Speaker 1 (29:53):
So I'm gonna leave it to you, Maga, what's your pick?
Speaker 2 (29:55):
Well, everyone knows by now that I have a soft
spot for bananas, and thanks to their high levels a
potassium and fiber and lack of fat or salt, they're
not a bad choice. They are pretty sugary, though, and
a little weak in the calorie department. For example, have
you heard of this YouTube phenomena Freely the Banana Girl.
Speaker 1 (30:13):
I can't say that's on my list YouTube channels I watch.
Speaker 2 (30:16):
Yeah, she's this Australian social media darling and she practices
a mono diet of just bananas, and since the average
banana only contains one hundred calories or so, Freely scarfs
down fifty plus bananas every day to keep her energy.
Speaker 1 (30:29):
Up every day. Yeah, oh my gosh.
Speaker 2 (30:31):
Yeah, So of course we'd be supplementing our fruit with
other things. On our list, so we wouldn't have to
eat quite as many. But if we're trying to stick
to just one kind of fruit, they're probably better options.
Speaker 3 (30:41):
Well, why don't we go the other way for a minute,
and it maybe choose a high calorie fruit like avocados.
I mean they have fiber and potassium like bananas do,
plus vitamin E, plenty of healthy fats that help keep
inflammation and cholesterol and check they're just overall healthy.
Speaker 2 (30:55):
Yeah, that definitely works. And avocados are great for breakfast
or lunch or dinner, and they're more versatile than bananas,
I guess. But another strong choice would be some kind
of berry, and any kind really. Blueberries and pomegranates are
popular choices because they're all packed with antioxidants and tons
of vitamin C. But I actually read this article in
Business Insider that ranked the nutritional value of a bunch
(31:16):
of berries, and the one that topped the list was
one I never would have thought elderberries.
Speaker 1 (31:22):
An elderberry. Never would have thought if you ever had
an elderberry. I actually haven't had an elderberry.
Speaker 2 (31:27):
But apparently at elderberries surpassed their cousins in potassium and
iron and fiber, and now also vitamin B six and see.
And the only problem is that eating too many raw
ones can actually make you sick, so you'd have to
cook them down into a syrup. But if you want
to go with the second best berry, that happens to
be the BlackBerry.
Speaker 3 (31:44):
I have had that type of berry and they're very good,
and it's definitely easier to find blackberries too. I'm actually
not sure I've ever seen an elderberry in a grocery store.
All right, so fruits, veggies, grains, starch, and dairy are
covered on our list, and now we need a dedicated protein.
Tempting to go with something like a decadent steak, but
you know, anything besides an ultraline cut is going to
(32:05):
provide more saturated fat and cholesterol than you really want
when we're trying to come up with a.
Speaker 1 (32:09):
List like this, so I don't know.
Speaker 3 (32:11):
Instead, I say we take another page from the Irish
and opt for maybe surf instead of turf.
Speaker 2 (32:16):
Yeah that sounds smart. So what are you thinking?
Speaker 3 (32:18):
Well, any fish is going to offer protein and healthy fat,
but you really can't do much better than salmon. I know,
we talked about kale earlier in the greens category, and
much like that, salmon has been the it thing within
its category.
Speaker 1 (32:31):
It's been the it fish for a while now, but it's.
Speaker 3 (32:34):
Loaded with high quality protein, not to mention vitamin B
twelve and minerals like potassium and selenium. You know, while
salmon is a fattier fish, most of that comes from
Omega three fatty acids, and those help promote healthy brain function,
They reduce joint inflammation, and they strengthen your heart.
Speaker 2 (32:51):
Yeah, well, salmon's a strong pick. But in case any
vegetarians are listening, we should point out a few guilt
free alternatives for protein, and thankfully there are a ton
of them, like bean pulses, nuts, and seeds. They're all
fantastic protein choices, and they're much easier to carry, store,
or even prepare than animal proteins.
Speaker 3 (33:08):
Assuming that you pair them appropriately to make a complete protein,
like in the case of beans, pairing them with rice.
That's right, all right, So what would you say are
the best of the best for the plant based proteins?
Speaker 2 (33:18):
Well, and this might be biased. According to the Bean Institute,
which apparently is a thing, beans contained between twenty one
percent and twenty five percent protein by weight, and since
that's much higher than other sources of vegetable protein, you know,
the nut or seed options. I'd go with beans and
different beans packed different amounts of protein and other minerals,
with black beans, kidney beans, pinto, and soy tending to
(33:41):
provide the most. But that's the beauty of beans. No
matter which one you go with, it's going to be
a good source of protein and fiber, and it'll also
be fat free, sodium free, and cholesterol.
Speaker 1 (33:50):
Fruit looks like beans for the wind. It felt like
you said beans a lot.
Speaker 3 (33:54):
I do want to mention though, that, just like with
eating too many fruits or or something like kale, there
is so thing as too much protein. It's actually called
protein poisoning, or some people call it rabbit starvation. I'd
never heard of this, but just saw it in the research,
and it occurs when forty five percent or more of
your calorie intake is derived from protein. And the nickname
actually has nothing to do with malnourished bunnies or anything
(34:17):
like that. It comes from the early North American explorers
who sometimes survive solely on lean proteins such as rabbits,
and this would happen for weeks at a time, and
that I had often led to starvation because a person's
liver it can only process so many calories from lean proteins. Yeah,
so remember, no matter where you get your protein, don't
(34:37):
overdo it. The bulk of your calories should be coming
from fats and carbs and not protein.
Speaker 2 (34:42):
Yeah, that's a good tip. So there you have it.
There are two kinds of potatoes on our list, oats
or barley, kaylor spinach, milk or yogurt, avocados or berries
and salmon or beans. And if you have extra room,
maybe a package of flaming hot Cheetos.
Speaker 3 (34:57):
Yeah, that would cover all of your nutritional bases. Again,
whether you want to or even whether you should stick
to a limited diet like this, that's a whole different matter,
maybe for a different episode one.
Speaker 2 (35:07):
Day totally, because while it makes sense on paper that
we can restrict our diets, that's not really how things
play out in real life. So, for example, there was
a study in two thousand and two where researchers took
data from fifty nine thousand women and found that those
who alternated sixteen to seventeen healthy foods through the diet
had a forty two percent lower mortality rate than those
who regularly ate between zero to eight healthy foods. So
(35:30):
even if you're eating mostly healthy foods like the ones
we listened today, you'll still be at a disadvantage if
you aren't varying what you eat.
Speaker 3 (35:37):
Yeah, and that actually tracks with an article I read
by a dietitian at Glasgow Caledonian University.
Speaker 1 (35:43):
Her name is Jenny Jackson.
Speaker 3 (35:44):
And she openly ad meants that while we know a
diet that includes a variety of vegetables is healthier than
eating just a few, we actually don't know exactly why
that's the case. As she puts it, quote, we don't
really know which foods are causing which effects. So while
you could work out exactly what you needed from macro nutrients,
you don't know exactly what you might be missing.
Speaker 4 (36:05):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (36:05):
I'd say the real strength of a thought experiment like
this is that it reminds us of the practical purpose
food serves. I mean, humans have evolved to value the
taste of food and the experience of eating way more
than any other species, which of course I'm grateful for,
But that focus on the sensory it can distract us
from food's true purpose, as feel for our lives.
Speaker 1 (36:23):
Yeah, I think that's exactly right.
Speaker 3 (36:25):
And you know, at a time when people are so
wrapped up with food as a social experience or as
a form of entertainment instagramming What's on your plate or
writing reviews on Yelp, but it is a little sobering
to think about food as this basic necessity. But picking
apart the pros and cons of individual foods, it does
give you a sense of not only what we're putting
in our bodies, but why we're doing it.
Speaker 2 (36:46):
That's definitely true. But you know, one thing you can
always safely consume without having to overthink it.
Speaker 1 (36:51):
I'm really hoping this is not about breast milk.
Speaker 2 (36:53):
Again, they're part time genius fact off And what do
you say, Because we're both surprised by how nutritious the
potato is, we turned this into the Potato Edition.
Speaker 1 (37:02):
All right, sounds good to me.
Speaker 2 (37:14):
So. According to a history of Greece, I found, there's
an often told story that, in order to popularize potatoes
in eighteen twenty eight, new governor Johnny Kappadistas tried to
give potatoes away, but the people were totally uninterested. So
we've placed armed guards in front of a shipment as
they were loaded off docks to make them seem more important.
And when the guards turned away or left their positions,
(37:34):
people just stole the potatoes. And that's how the potatoes
popularity spread there.
Speaker 3 (37:38):
Oh wow, But what's strange is that it isn't the
first time leaders tried to convince people to eat potatoes.
According to an article in Mental Floss, quote in the
late seventeen hundreds, in an effort to inspire their starving
subjects to plant the newly introduced vegetable, Marie Antoinette wore
potato flowers in her hair, and her husband, King Louis
the sixteenth wore them in his buttonholes. Move launched a
(38:00):
new fad, convincing French nobility to start wearing potato flowers.
The plant didn't have the intended effect. The lower classes
resented the propaganda and spurned the plant.
Speaker 2 (38:11):
So did you know that potato parties used to be
a thing in Japan and South Korea? Like teenagers would
go into McDonald's order two hundred dollars or more of
fries and then just spread them out on tables to
eat while they hung out.
Speaker 1 (38:23):
Actually, that sounds pretty delicious to me.
Speaker 4 (38:25):
I want to admit that.
Speaker 3 (38:26):
Well, did you know that mister Potato had was the
first toy advertised on television.
Speaker 2 (38:30):
I'd forgotten that. The craziest part to me was that
you actually used to provide your own potato.
Speaker 3 (38:36):
Yeah, well, since you knew that fact, how about this one?
Did you know that gardeners will sometimes put rose cuttings
into a potato, then plant the potato and the ground.
Speaker 2 (38:45):
Why is that?
Speaker 3 (38:46):
Well, the potatoes full of nutrients, so it can actually
help the rose grow.
Speaker 2 (38:50):
That's insane. Do you know that Garbachev's wife once tried
to impress a British minister by telling him that the
Soviets had more than three hundred ways to cook potatoes,
and when he doubted, she sent him a cookbook of
five hundred ways to cook a potato showed him.
Speaker 3 (39:05):
All right, Well, I mean, I guess with five hundred
recipes from Russia alone, we don't have to worry about
Pendulad and whether he gets his variety anymore. But all right,
I think because of that fact, I'm gonna let you
take home the championship belt this week. That's it for
today's part time Genius. If you enjoyed the show, feel
free to drop us a line on our twenty four
to seven fact hotline that's one eight four four pt Genius.
(39:25):
You can also send us a note part Time Genius
at HowStuffWorks dot com or find us on Facebook and Twitter.
And if you really really enjoyed the show, please give
us a review or a rating on Apple Podcasts or
wherever you listen to your podcast. Thanks so much, thanks
(39:51):
again for listening. Part Time Genius is a production of
How Stuff Works and wouldn't be possible without several brilliant
people who do the important things we couldn't even begin
to Understands McNeil does the editing thing. Noel Brown made
the theme song and does the mixy mixy sound thing.
Speaker 2 (40:04):
Jerry Roland does the exec producer thing.
Speaker 3 (40:07):
Gabeluesier is our lead researcher, with support from the research
Army including Austin Thompson, Nolan Brown and Lucas Adams and Eves.
Speaker 2 (40:13):
Jeff Cook gets to show to your ears, good job, Eves.
Speaker 3 (40:16):
If you like what you heard, we hope you'll subscribe.
And if you really really like what you've heard, maybe
you could leave.
Speaker 1 (40:20):
A good review for us. Do we forget Jason Jason,
who
Guess what, mango? What's that?
Speaker 2 (00:01):
Will?
Speaker 3 (00:02):
Do you hear about this super pizza they invented in
England a couple of years ago.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
I was just reading about it again.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
No, but I did get a note from a very
sweet listener asking me to stop using the word super
so much, and I was thinking for today's episode, I
just used the word top notch instead. So tell me
about this top notch pizza.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
That's a good word, manco Well, super pizza was developed
at Glasgow University and it's this frozen pizza that has
seaweed baked into the crust and then the sauce is
boosted with nutrients. And the whole idea is that, because
it has a third of your daily vitamins and minerals,
you could actually eat pizza for breakfast, lunch and dinner
and be somewhat healthy.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
That's pretty cool. But how's it taste?
Speaker 3 (00:39):
Well, I guess top notch as you might say, now,
I think like pretty good from what I've read online. Anyway,
reading about it made me wonder if you had to
pare your pantry down to the bare minimum, what are
the only foods you'd need to survive? And that's what
today's episode is all about Hey their podcast listeners, Welcome
(01:13):
to Part Time Genius. I'm Will Pearson and as always
I'm joined by my good friend Mangesh hot Ticketter and
sitting behind that soundproof booth baking some tiny but delicious
pastries and his easy bake oven as our producer Tristan McNeil.
Speaker 1 (01:25):
Where did he get that?
Speaker 2 (01:26):
What is that? Tristan? Are those tiny croissants?
Speaker 4 (01:29):
Uh?
Speaker 2 (01:29):
Yeah, listener, those are tiny croissants?
Speaker 1 (01:31):
Won a tiny croissant? That's so good?
Speaker 2 (01:34):
All right?
Speaker 3 (01:34):
Well, for today's show, we decided to do a little
thought experiment. Basically, we want to know if you were
going to limit your daily diet to only a handful
of different foods, ten or five or even just one,
what should you eat?
Speaker 2 (01:47):
Yeah. I was pretty sure the answer is going to
be flaming hot cheetos. But apparently the answer is not
flaming hot Cheetoh. I don't think it is, yeah, because
this really isn't what snacks you couldn't go without, so
much as the stuff you couldn't live without plus three
times Cheetos have. It couldn't be that healthy for you.
Speaker 1 (02:02):
Probably not.
Speaker 3 (02:03):
And you know, I think the idea here is to
concentrate on building the most restricted diet we can, using
foods that are nutritious enough to actually keep you alive.
And along the way, we'll explore the reasons why some
people actually strive for a lack of variety in what
they eat. And it will also take a look at
some of the craziest restrictive diets that people have ever
subjected themselves.
Speaker 2 (02:21):
To, speaking which will also be joined by Andrew Taylor.
He's the Australian man who declared twenty sixteen to be
the Year the Spud and then he commemorated it by
eating nothing but potatoes for three hundred and sixty six days.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
Oh and he chose a leapier to do this.
Speaker 2 (02:34):
Yeah, and now he's written a book called The DIY
Spud Fit Challenge, and it dares readers to change their
relationship with food in order to live a healthier life.
So we'll find out what possessed him to do this
in the first place, and why potatoes, of all things.
Speaker 1 (02:47):
I mean, it's so weird.
Speaker 3 (02:49):
I feel like growing up, potatoes were considered a healthy vegetable,
or at least healthy enough. And then there was the
whole anti car movement and this big push to cut
potatoes out entirely. Now it feels like it's sort of
nudging its way back in.
Speaker 2 (03:02):
I know, it's so weird how these things go back
and forth, like ex are the same way with all
their cholesterol and that debate, and it's just so strange
like that we can't decide to just do this in moderation.
Speaker 3 (03:12):
Yeah, and the strange part is that it almost feels
heretical to be talking about limiting our food selection. I mean,
we've mentioned this before, but Americans have never had such
a huge variety of options as we do today, and
the idea of purposefully removing choices, it kind of runs
counter to most people's thinking.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
Yeah, so I know this isn't food related, but for
a while I was enamored with this idea of having
a daily uniform. My mother in law gave me this
book she was reading about willpower, and in it there's
this argument that you only have so much willpower and
decision making power in a day. And so people like
Obama when he was president, supposedly had someone pick out
his clothes for him, and all of his shirts and
pants wear different colors, but the same style and the size.
(03:51):
He liked the idea being if you're not using your
brain power for any of those smaller decisions, you can
actually save it for making swift, important decisions later in
the day. But I know a number of successful people
who just have one basic lunch they rely on, and
whether that's like a turkey sandwich or a PBNJ.
Speaker 1 (04:08):
Or ramen from downstairs.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
Yeah, and they just eat that every day because something
they like enough but don't have to spend any time
thinking about.
Speaker 3 (04:15):
Yeah, and you know, time and efficiency. That's definitely one
aspect of narrowing your food choices. But another that I've
been thinking about is, you know.
Speaker 1 (04:22):
Space travel.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
How's that?
Speaker 3 (04:23):
Well, according to Pop's side quote, the impetus of a
lot of nutritional science is how do we feed people
in space? So a lot of the effort is on
how to pack more nutritional content into lighter weight foods,
you know, that are easy to carry.
Speaker 2 (04:36):
Well, we'll definitely talk a little bit about food science
and efforts to pack foods with more nutrients. And of
course there's also this trend of monodiets where people eat
from just one food group and even just one particular food.
People do this with bananas or watermelon, or in the
magician Pendulett's case, he did this with potatoes as well,
and it's supposedly to shock his body into weight loss.
Speaker 3 (04:58):
I have to say that it just sounds so miserab,
but I guess they're all sorts of ways to eat
a potato, and he's probably not just eating baked potatoes
all day, at least I hope he's.
Speaker 2 (05:07):
I don't know. I wonder how many people were inspired
by the Martian to do this diet. But when I
first started, you mentioned this topic and this idea of
foods you can't live without. It reminded me of that
German poet and philosopher of Frederick Schiller, and he'd keep
rotting apples in a drawer in his desk, and whenever
he was getting writer's block, he'd open the door to
take a whiff. Supposedly it inspired him to keep writing.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
I never heard that before, I know.
Speaker 2 (05:30):
And then there's like Balls, who had fifty cups of
coffee a day to keep him writing. But do you
have any tricks for writer's block?
Speaker 1 (05:37):
I don't actually think I do.
Speaker 2 (05:39):
What about you, Well, it's not a trick, but I
actually hate writing, so whenever I have to do it.
I often get like a bag of jelly beans as
a treat, just to make the experience seem more fun.
But I know I took us off track. Nutrition has
definitely worn against mono diets, but sometimes that dieting can't
be helped.
Speaker 1 (05:56):
So what do you mean by that?
Speaker 2 (05:58):
Well, it can also be psychological like that. There was
a story a few years ago about that teenage girl
in England who'd been hooked on chicken nuggets. She'd been
downing them since like age two or something, and according
to the report, she'd eat in practically nothing but chicken
nuggets for like fifteen years.
Speaker 1 (06:13):
Oh wow, Yeah, I remember hearing about her.
Speaker 2 (06:15):
I know, and it sounds kind of funny or impressive,
even until one day she passed out and couldn't breathe.
Speaker 3 (06:21):
That's a lot less funny. So she did she have
a heart attack or something.
Speaker 2 (06:24):
No, Apparently she was so malnourished that she had to
receive vitamin and nutrient injections.
Speaker 1 (06:29):
Wow. I mean, it's actually kind of heartbreaking when you
think about it.
Speaker 4 (06:31):
I know.
Speaker 2 (06:32):
And the sadder part is that her mother couldn't even
stop her. Like her words were quote, it breaks my
heart to see her eating those damn nuggets.
Speaker 3 (06:40):
You know, what you're describing sounds way more than just
hankering for chicken nuggets. I mean, it actually sounds more
like compulsive behavior.
Speaker 2 (06:47):
M And in some cases people are like highly selective
about foods they're willing to eat because of food addictions.
But it can also be about food phobias. And in fact,
there was this other British woman who ate only chicken
nuggets for twenty five years.
Speaker 1 (07:00):
She was also British. That's what the Brits and they're nuggets.
Speaker 2 (07:04):
I have no idea, but in this woman's case, she
became so accustomed to eating her favorite food at home
that she developed this serious fear of eating anything else,
like when she put it in her mouth, she'd gaged.
But after visiting a hypnotherapist in London for a single hour,
just an hour, she was totally cured. And she's been
feasting on a non nugget diet ever since.
Speaker 3 (07:25):
I'm so happy she's off the nuggets, all right, So
this is obvious, but in general, it sounds like eating
only one kind of food is a.
Speaker 1 (07:31):
Very bad idea.
Speaker 2 (07:32):
I mean, I guess it works for pets. Ruby has
this pet bearded dragon at school that apparently only eats crickets,
and it seems to be doing just fine. But you're right,
I mean, part of the problem is that, like, they're
huge parts of the world population, especially in Africa and Asia,
and they survive on a diet that's made up almost
entirely of rice. So it's not really by choice. And
(07:53):
in fact, according to a report from the Etch University
in Zurich and I'm playing this on now, quote, nearly
every second person in the world eats primarily rice to
meet the daily calorie need. A meal of rice stops
the hunger, but contains only very few or none of
the essential micronutrients. So, I mean, the good news is
that researchers have had lots of success with creating genetically
(08:15):
modified multi nutrient rice to help fight malnutrition, especially in
those rice dependent regions.
Speaker 3 (08:21):
You know, I know they're economic and political implications of
the genetically modified food stuff, but it is kind of
amazing that you can just infuse all these nutrients into
rice and solve this big problem. Of course, whether someone
chooses a restricted diet or has it thrust upon them,
that lack of dinner table variety poses other problems. You know,
aside from the nutrition of it all, and mainly that
(08:44):
just makes meals seem so boring. Really yeah, I mean
that's my biggest gripe with all this, and that's not
just our opinion. I mean, humans actually experience a phenomenon
called sensory specific satiety, and that's when we keep eating
the same thing.
Speaker 2 (08:57):
So I've never heard of that. What's that mean?
Speaker 1 (08:59):
You know?
Speaker 3 (08:59):
So basically, the more you eat of a specific food,
the less appetizing it gets and the less you can
stand the thought of eating it.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
Which it explains why kids always complain when they're full
midway through dinner, but then miraculously find more room in
their stomachs when dessert rolls around.
Speaker 3 (09:14):
That's exactly what's happening there. And researchers think sensory specific
say should he might be an evolutionary trade. You know,
it acts as the body's way of telling us to
eat something different in order to avoid that malnutrition. But
of course you don't have to stick to just a
single food item to suffer this. The effects of this
even you know, limiting yourself to one food group can
be unhealthy, and I mean, just look at the fruitarians
(09:35):
out there.
Speaker 2 (09:36):
So I grew up vegetarian, but I remember when I
heard about fruitarians thinking that feels like a step too far.
Speaker 1 (09:42):
I would agree with that.
Speaker 3 (09:44):
Well, it's definitely a more extreme form of vegetarianism. And
the idea is that seventy five percent or more of
your daily food intake should be fresh fruit and usually
eat and raw and health and wellness bloggers have helped
popularize the diet in recent years, so much so that
hundreds of like mind eaters now gather every year in
New York for the Woodstock Fruit Festival. The other Woodstock,
(10:05):
I think it's probably just a little bit different than
they get the other Woodstock. So it's this week long
event where fruitarians gather to mingle with other fruitarians, they
attend lectures and gorge themselves on the all you can
eat fruit and vegetable buffet, you know, and that's what
they get for their twelve hundred dollars tickets.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
Yeah, it's crazy.
Speaker 3 (10:22):
And if you're wondering how much fresh produce it takes
the feed close to one thousand hungry fruitarians for an
entire week, the answer is over one hundred thousand pounds.
Speaker 2 (10:30):
That's so much fruit, so wasn't Steve Jobs a fruitarian?
I feel like I read that somewhere. And also that
he smelled terrible. I don't know if that was because
of how his body reacted to the fruits or because
he didn't use any deodorants.
Speaker 3 (10:43):
Well, I can't confirm why he smelled, but Jobs was
probably the most famous fruitarian in the world, and he
kept the strict vegan diet for most of his life,
went through stints along the way where he would only
drink smoothies and eat raw fruit.
Speaker 1 (10:57):
Just that kind of strict diet.
Speaker 2 (10:59):
And I guess it all makes sense in hindsight, right,
Like it's right there in the company name.
Speaker 3 (11:04):
Well, you may be kidding about this, but it's actually true.
So Jobs came up with the name Apple Computers during
one of his fruitarian phases.
Speaker 1 (11:12):
Yeah, it says it.
Speaker 3 (11:13):
In his biography, he wrote, I had just come back
from the Apple farm. It sounded fun, spirited and not intimidating.
Apple took the edge off the word computer.
Speaker 2 (11:22):
That's so crazy, Like I always just assumed that Apple
was a reference to Isaac Newton. Yeah, although didn't all
that fruit actually wind up contributing to Steve Jobs's illness. Like,
I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that there's a higher
risk of pancreatic cancer if you consume a lot of
fruits and juices.
Speaker 3 (11:37):
Well, some studies have definitely shown a strong link, but
of course there's no real way of knowing what brought
on Steve's illness, and diet can definitely play a role,
but it's hardly the deciding factor with something like cancer.
That said, when Ashton Kutcher took on the role of
Steve Jobs for that biopic, kutchr right here to a
fruitarian diet for about a month as a way of
getting into character, but apparently it.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
Was a disaster.
Speaker 3 (12:00):
He end up being rushed to the hospital with stomach pains,
you know, just a couple days before filming began, and
the test found that his pancreas levels were way off
what they should have been, which really is kind of
frightening given how Jobs passed away.
Speaker 2 (12:12):
And it's kind of counterintuitive, right, like to think of
something we equate with such health being bad for you.
I guess it's just another win for like boring old moderation.
Speaker 3 (12:21):
Yeah, you know, you're definitely not going to find most
doctors or dieticians that recommend you take up fruitarianism or
any other highly restrictive diet.
Speaker 1 (12:29):
And a good general.
Speaker 3 (12:30):
Rule of thumb for diets is that you know, if
it's making you sick, it's probably a bad diet.
Speaker 2 (12:34):
That's great advice. But vegetarians square off fish and meat,
and they tend to be pretty healthy in general. How
come we can get away with dodging some food groups.
Speaker 1 (12:43):
But not others.
Speaker 3 (12:44):
We tend to aim for varied diets because that gives
us a better chance of getting all the different nutrients
we need to help our bodies function properly, and cutting
out whole food groups lessons that likelihood to different degrees.
So eliminating meat is one thing. I mean, you can
make up the protein other ways, but eliminating everything except me, honestly,
that would be about as dangerous as the all fruit diet.
Speaker 2 (13:07):
Well, we should definitely get into what ten foods we'd
take into space or to a desert island. But now
seems like a good time to get Andrew Taylor on
the line and see if we can figure out how
he beat the odds and managed to survive and even
thrive on his all potato diet.
Speaker 3 (13:28):
So Mengo I know today we're talking about limiting diets
to ten foods, and what would those ten foods be
if that's all we could choose. Well, today's guest took
that to another level. So in twenty sixteen, Andrew Taylor
was struggling with depression and anxiety, and he also weighed
more than he'd ever wait in his life. So he
(13:48):
decided to take matters into his own hands. He took
what you might call a pretty unusual measure, and that
was he decided to eat nothing but potatoes for a year.
I don't know if that's how you've ever decided thought
about approaching weight loss or anything like that, but Andrew Taylor,
welcome the part time Genius.
Speaker 4 (14:05):
Thanks for having me on. I'm excited.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
Yeah, we're thrilled to have you as well. So, Andrew,
you said that you were addicted to food at the time,
and I think I read you wanted to make your
food as boring as possible, so your mind wasn't consumed
by food. Why did you decide on the potato?
Speaker 4 (14:20):
Yeah, that's exactly right. It was an experiment really to
see if dealing with my own food addictions through abstinence
would would be a helpful thing. So, you know, an
alcoholic should quit alcohol, and I thinkured maybe a food
that it should quit food, And obviously we can't quit
food entirely. So I wondered if there was one food
(14:41):
that I could eat and then quit everything else and
getting as close as possible to quitting as you could.
So I chose to potato is after a lot of research.
I spent six weeks studying to figure out what would
be the best food to choose, and potato has just
had the most evidence behind them. Basically, most people know
about the Irish diet. For a couple of centuries, the
(15:04):
Irish entire population ate almost only potatoes, and they were
maintained good fitness and health, and they actually went through
a population zoom, which wouldn't happen if they weren't fit
and healthy. There are tribes around the world, the Papua
New Guinean Highland of tribes of this day eat almost
(15:24):
only sweet potatoes, and there's you know, examples in Japan
and the Okinawan getting nearly all of their calories from
Japanese sweet potatoes and living having a very high rate
of centenarians, that's people that lived till one hundred years old.
Another interesting thing was prisoners of war. I read about
(15:46):
prisoners of war that were fed only potatoes, and they
were the same thing. They were in great health and
in great fitness. And you know, you see photos of
prisoners of war that are totally malnurish, and that's not
these guys. These guys that were fed only potatoes did really,
really well. And another great peace of information I found
(16:09):
was there was a study done in the twenties, in
the late nineteen twenties where a marathon running couple were
supervised by scientists for six months eating only potatoes, and again,
they did really well. They maintained good fitness and health,
and at the end of six months they actually ran
personal best marathons. So there's a lot more information that
(16:29):
I read, but that's the best examples I can give you.
And yeah, once I read all that, fuck a lot
more than my decision was easy. The potatoes were the
obvious choice.
Speaker 3 (16:39):
Wow, that's just fascinating. And clearly you did your homework
on this.
Speaker 1 (16:43):
I am curious.
Speaker 3 (16:44):
Were you consulting a nutritionist at all through the process.
Speaker 4 (16:48):
No, I've got my personal doctor is a dietician as
well qualified dietician and doctor. And once I'd done all
my research and made my decision and decided that that's
what I wanted to do, I went to him and
basically told him what my plan was. And yeah, he
agreed to supervise me and help me, but he didn't
have any input in the initial planning of it.
Speaker 2 (17:09):
Now, and I heard you mentioned sweet potatoes and I
think regular potatoes. Did you mix potatoes or was there
just one tape of potato you were eating on the staus?
Speaker 4 (17:19):
I had all kinds of potatoes. Yeah, I didn't want to.
I wanted to be restrictive, but I didn't want to like,
you know, if I went to the to the store
and they only had one kind of potato available and
it wasn't the kind that I was eating, that was
going to make things hard, you know. So I just
decided to make it all kinds of potatoes, just for
logistical reasons, I felt.
Speaker 2 (17:38):
Yeah, And obviously the potato is pretty versatile to cook.
But what taps of meals did you make and did
your art of cooking the potato evolve as you continued
on this process.
Speaker 4 (17:48):
Yeah, Well, like you briefly mentioned earlier, I figured that
a big part of my problem with food was that
I was relying on it for comfort, enjoyment, emotional support,
things like that at the end of a bad day,
I would get home and want to try to make
myself feel better by eating exciting, interesting food. So the
(18:09):
idea was that I wanted to make my food as
boring as possible so that I'd have to retrain my
brain to get that comfort and enjoyment and emotional support
from other areas of life rather than just from food.
So for that reason, I kept it as boring as
possible on purpose. So ninety five percent of my meals
were probably mashed potato, baked potato, or boiled potato, or
(18:31):
just plain and yeah. Every now and then, maybe once
a fortnite or even once a month, I would do
something a little bit more interesting, like they make some
oven baked chips or some potato waffles or something like that.
But really it was all about learning to be happy
with boring food. And I got this saying, make your
(18:53):
food boring in your life interesting. So rather than spending
my time and energy on trying to make interesting, exciting food,
I just tried to do interesting and exciting things.
Speaker 1 (19:03):
That seems like a great way to approach it.
Speaker 3 (19:05):
I'm curious, are you still eating potatoes now that you've
finished your year of only potatoes?
Speaker 4 (19:10):
Yeah? I had mashed to tatoes and rockets. I think
you got to call it mash potatoes and arugula for breakfast.
Speaker 1 (19:19):
So, Andrew, I'm curious.
Speaker 3 (19:20):
I know, you know, diet experts would probably point out
the lack of protein that you're getting in this diet.
Speaker 1 (19:26):
So, I mean, what would you say to those that that.
Speaker 3 (19:29):
Would be critical of the diet or be concerned that
you might not be getting enough protein or or you know,
other essentials in your diet.
Speaker 4 (19:36):
Yeah, well there are I've had lots of inputs from
that experts around the world since I started doing this.
And it's interesting that potatoes, I guess have a bad
rat that that they're lacking in so much nutrition, but
they've actually I was getting when I was eating in
the potatoes only, I was getting idy clods and then
any grams of protein a diet which is death well
(20:00):
within the recommended daily intake, and it's all the required
essential amino acids getting covered. So yeah, I find it
a little bit disturbing when experts make these claims with
clearly not knowing what they're talking about and potatoes. Everyone
knows they've got a lot of carbohydrates, but they've also
got the protein. Like I mentioned, they've got a small
(20:22):
amount of fat, which is enough to give the body
what it needs, especially when you're carrying extra fat like
I was. And yeah, they've got a really good balance
of all the other vitamins and minerals that we need too.
So you know, my blood tests were getting better through
the whole year, and I was really getting everything I
need from this diet. So yeah, no complaints there.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
So I was curious how your marriage was affected by this,
and what were you spending more time on instead of
just cooking and thinking about food.
Speaker 4 (20:54):
Yeah, my marriage was only affected in positive ways. My
life was really supportive, And before I started this, I
have no stace to say that I gave one hundred
percent of everything I had to being the best husband
I could and being the best father I could. But
you know, I was clinically depressed and one hundred and
twenty pounds more than I am now, and so you know,
(21:17):
one hundred percent then is not the same as one
hundred percent now. So I'm able to give more these days,
which means my marriage, and my life has only been
affected in positive ways. Yeah, so no complaints there, and
my wife was really supported from the start. It's amazing
how much time and space food takes up in your life,
for you know, thinking about it, planning and preparing it,
(21:39):
shopping for it, cooking and cleaning up after it. All that.
You don't realize how much time and effort and energy
that all takes up until you remove it from your life. Basically, So, yeah,
I've added a lot into my life. I'm doing a
lot more exercise, and really I guess most of my
extra time and attention has just gone into having fun
(22:01):
with my loss and my boy. And you know, the
time I'm used to spend thinking about and planning and
all that, it's it's just spent on enjoying myself with them.
I'll wrestle with my little boy and read books and
night jokes and you know, we go walking and playing
in the playground and it's just all the little things
(22:21):
in lost. But just got a little bit of extra
focus for me. That's it's time to say that there's
one particular thing. It's just across the board. I get
a little bit more time for each of the more
positive experiences in loss.
Speaker 2 (22:34):
That's so, that's wonderful.
Speaker 3 (22:36):
Well, Andrew, this has just been fascinating and congratulations on
your success with this. I really admire what you've accomplished.
And as you've put it before, it's it's not about
the potato.
Speaker 1 (22:46):
I mean.
Speaker 3 (22:46):
You can check out Andrew's book, The DIY spud Fit
Challenge on Amazon or visit him online at spudfit dot com. Andrew,
thanks so much for joining us today.
Speaker 4 (22:55):
Thanks so much for having me. It's same fun and yeah,
good luck with everything you guys do.
Speaker 3 (23:12):
You're listening to part Time Genus and we're talking about
how to get by on the least number of foods possible.
Speaker 1 (23:18):
Okay, mango.
Speaker 3 (23:18):
So, after talking to Andrew, I think we're in agreement
that potatoes belong on our list of the only foods
you'll ever need.
Speaker 1 (23:24):
What do you think about this?
Speaker 2 (23:25):
Absolutely? I mean, there are twenty amino acids that humans
need to survive, and while our bodies produce most of
those foras, there are nine essential acids that we only
get from foods we eat. And although most foods supply
at least a couple of those essential aminos, white potatoes
can actually get you there in one go.
Speaker 3 (23:42):
And it's funny that potatoes don't get the coveted superfood
moniker like some of the others do. But I agree
with you on this. I mean, they belong in the card.
And of course white potatoes aren't enough on their own,
since they lack some of the much needed minerals and vitamins.
Speaker 1 (23:56):
You know, we think about vitamins A and E, and.
Speaker 3 (23:58):
As Andrew points out, a true potatotarian, I guess if
that's a word, they would need to add sweet potatoes
to the mix in order to survive long term.
Speaker 2 (24:07):
Yeah, that sweet potato footnote really made me wonder how
the Irish made it through that famine in the eighteen hundreds.
Roughly a third of the population lived mostly on plain
potatoes during those lean years, but I don't think they
were farming sweet potatoes. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (24:20):
I was actually curious about this as well, so I
decided to do a little digging into this. And the
traditional go to meal for the Irish peasants has been potatoes, milk, oats, beans,
and bread. But you know, by the time the famine struck,
most peasants had to sell their milk supplied just to
make rent, so their meals dwindled to potatoes, salted fish,
and oatmeal.
Speaker 2 (24:39):
And that was enough to keep them going for the
most part.
Speaker 1 (24:42):
It actually was.
Speaker 3 (24:43):
I mean that the fish would have been high in
protein and calcium, plus some of the important minerals and vitamins.
But the real saving gray, surprisingly.
Speaker 1 (24:51):
Was actually the oatmeal.
Speaker 3 (24:53):
You see, even on a diet that included both white
and sweet potatoes, you'd still be lacking a crucial mineral.
And I have a heart time pronouncing this mineral, but
it's called molybdenum.
Speaker 2 (25:03):
I've never heard of it.
Speaker 3 (25:04):
Nobody's heard of it, and I don't think anybody can
say it, and it's often called the most important element
you've never heard of. So basically, without molybdenum, your body
would be unable to break down the sul fights and
turn them into usable sources of energy. And since soul
fights are naturally found in so many foods we eat,
including potatoes, most foods would eventually kill you without it,
(25:26):
you know, in order to take care of the sul fights.
But thankfully, we really don't need all that much of
the mineral. In fact, the recommended daily allowance for it
is only about forty five micrograms, so a little oatmeal
actually does the trick.
Speaker 1 (25:39):
And you just ask the Irish.
Speaker 2 (25:41):
Or the Scots for that matter. And while researching, I
found that the cornerstones of a traditional Scottish diet where potatoes, oatmeal,
milk and kale. And now I'm actually thinking they all
should have a place on our list.
Speaker 1 (25:53):
It's a pretty great comba.
Speaker 3 (25:54):
I mean, you could probably get by on those four
a loan if you had to. Though, I think you
could make the case for swapping oats for barley just
because it has the same essential vitamins and minerals as
the other grains, but it also helps to manage those
cholesterol levels.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
Hm.
Speaker 2 (26:09):
Okay, so we've got a pretty good list going here.
We've got white and sweet potatoes as well as oats
or barley, and now we're adding milk and kale. And
of course I'm kind of sick of hearing people talk
about kill these days.
Speaker 1 (26:20):
Yeah, I know, I know what you mean on this.
Speaker 3 (26:22):
So it does kind of live up to its reputation though.
It can help with everything from cardiovascular support to the
fight against things like arthritis or asthma or diabetes, even cancer.
Speaker 1 (26:32):
It's been shown in some studies.
Speaker 3 (26:34):
Plus it's super rich and vitamins and minerals. I know
it said super and.
Speaker 2 (26:39):
Fibers, I know, but I feel like I'm in a
kale ad.
Speaker 1 (26:42):
Well, I mean mango.
Speaker 3 (26:43):
A single one hundred gram serving of kale contains way
more than the recommended daily allowance for let's see here,
vitamin C, vitamin A, and vitamin K, and you can
order some using the coupon code kale dot com slash genius.
Speaker 2 (26:57):
So to be clear, that's a fake coupon code, not
on the kale lobby's doll And while kale has plenty
going for it, it's not without its drawbacks.
Speaker 1 (27:06):
Really, So so why is that?
Speaker 2 (27:07):
Well, rackcale can be extremely tough on the digestive system,
and even cooked kale can lead to hypothyroidism. That's if
you eat too much of it and all that vitamin
K you mentioned. I mean, it's great in moderation, but
too much can lead to the formation of blood clots.
So if you're already dealing with blood clots, or if
you're on a blood thinning medication, you might want to
sub in spinach instead.
Speaker 3 (27:29):
You know, it's weird how it all gets more complicated
than you'd think even with something like kale. But you know,
you know, still milk seems like a safe bet for
the list. If you drink vitamin D fortified whole milk,
your body's getting a lot of what it needs right there.
Speaker 4 (27:43):
You know.
Speaker 3 (27:43):
It's got carbs, protein, potassium, all the essential amino acids,
and of course, as we know, calcium.
Speaker 1 (27:49):
Pretty much the only things missing are fiber. And apparently
it's so hard for me to say molybdenum.
Speaker 3 (27:55):
Yes, exactly, all right, So so grains and greens and
potatoes still need to be on the menu to get
your nutrition fixed.
Speaker 1 (28:02):
But it really is.
Speaker 3 (28:03):
Amazing how close any one of these foods can get
you to a pretty healthy diet.
Speaker 2 (28:07):
It is, and I know we already debunk the monodiet,
but there actually is one food that succeeds at delivering
the complete nutritional package all on its own. And that's
better than an all potato diet and way way better
than the all chicken nugget diet.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
Do you like chicken nuggets for that?
Speaker 3 (28:22):
Now I'm curious, sorry, So what's this amazing mystery food?
Speaker 2 (28:25):
Milk or specifically human milk. So, according to Joanne Hattner,
a nutrition consultant at Stanford and former national spokesperson for
the American Dietetic Association. Mother's milk is a complete food
that means it's calorically sufficient and contains a little bit
of all the vitamins, minerals, and amino acids that we need.
Speaker 3 (28:44):
Yeah, but you're talking about for babies though, right, Like
adults couldn't survive on breast milk, could they.
Speaker 2 (28:49):
Well, that's the catch. Even though all the vital nutrients
are in there, they don't occur in high enough amounts
to sustain an adult. In fact, that that's why we
ultimately add solid foods to infant diet so that we
can eef up the amount of iron and other nutrients
that they receive. And technically, though anyone could survive solely
on mother's milk, provided they were able to you know, source.
Speaker 1 (29:09):
Enough of it, Well, I don't think that's gonna happen,
thank god.
Speaker 2 (29:12):
Yeah, exactly. So our best bed is to stick to
other mammal milks like cows or goats, And if the
milk's for menage or you know, like a yogurt, that's
all the better because the added bacteria can do wonders
for our digestive tracks.
Speaker 1 (29:39):
Welcome back to part time Genius.
Speaker 2 (29:41):
Now.
Speaker 1 (29:41):
Earlier we harped on fruitarians quite a.
Speaker 3 (29:43):
Bit, so I do want to make sure we give
fruit it's doe and include at least one on our list. Now,
the problem is, there's so many tasty fruits and pretty
much all of them are good for you.
Speaker 1 (29:53):
So I'm gonna leave it to you, Maga, what's your pick?
Speaker 2 (29:55):
Well, everyone knows by now that I have a soft
spot for bananas, and thanks to their high levels a
potassium and fiber and lack of fat or salt, they're
not a bad choice. They are pretty sugary, though, and
a little weak in the calorie department. For example, have
you heard of this YouTube phenomena Freely the Banana Girl.
Speaker 1 (30:13):
I can't say that's on my list YouTube channels I watch.
Speaker 2 (30:16):
Yeah, she's this Australian social media darling and she practices
a mono diet of just bananas, and since the average
banana only contains one hundred calories or so, Freely scarfs
down fifty plus bananas every day to keep her energy.
Speaker 1 (30:29):
Up every day. Yeah, oh my gosh.
Speaker 2 (30:31):
Yeah, So of course we'd be supplementing our fruit with
other things. On our list, so we wouldn't have to
eat quite as many. But if we're trying to stick
to just one kind of fruit, they're probably better options.
Speaker 3 (30:41):
Well, why don't we go the other way for a minute,
and it maybe choose a high calorie fruit like avocados.
I mean they have fiber and potassium like bananas do,
plus vitamin E, plenty of healthy fats that help keep
inflammation and cholesterol and check they're just overall healthy.
Speaker 2 (30:55):
Yeah, that definitely works. And avocados are great for breakfast
or lunch or dinner, and they're more versatile than bananas,
I guess. But another strong choice would be some kind
of berry, and any kind really. Blueberries and pomegranates are
popular choices because they're all packed with antioxidants and tons
of vitamin C. But I actually read this article in
Business Insider that ranked the nutritional value of a bunch
(31:16):
of berries, and the one that topped the list was
one I never would have thought elderberries.
Speaker 1 (31:22):
An elderberry. Never would have thought if you ever had
an elderberry. I actually haven't had an elderberry.
Speaker 2 (31:27):
But apparently at elderberries surpassed their cousins in potassium and
iron and fiber, and now also vitamin B six and see.
And the only problem is that eating too many raw
ones can actually make you sick, so you'd have to
cook them down into a syrup. But if you want
to go with the second best berry, that happens to
be the BlackBerry.
Speaker 3 (31:44):
I have had that type of berry and they're very good,
and it's definitely easier to find blackberries too. I'm actually
not sure I've ever seen an elderberry in a grocery store.
All right, so fruits, veggies, grains, starch, and dairy are
covered on our list, and now we need a dedicated protein.
Tempting to go with something like a decadent steak, but
you know, anything besides an ultraline cut is going to
(32:05):
provide more saturated fat and cholesterol than you really want
when we're trying to come up with a.
Speaker 1 (32:09):
List like this, so I don't know.
Speaker 3 (32:11):
Instead, I say we take another page from the Irish
and opt for maybe surf instead of turf.
Speaker 2 (32:16):
Yeah that sounds smart. So what are you thinking?
Speaker 3 (32:18):
Well, any fish is going to offer protein and healthy fat,
but you really can't do much better than salmon. I know,
we talked about kale earlier in the greens category, and
much like that, salmon has been the it thing within
its category.
Speaker 1 (32:31):
It's been the it fish for a while now, but it's.
Speaker 3 (32:34):
Loaded with high quality protein, not to mention vitamin B
twelve and minerals like potassium and selenium. You know, while
salmon is a fattier fish, most of that comes from
Omega three fatty acids, and those help promote healthy brain function,
They reduce joint inflammation, and they strengthen your heart.
Speaker 2 (32:51):
Yeah, well, salmon's a strong pick. But in case any
vegetarians are listening, we should point out a few guilt
free alternatives for protein, and thankfully there are a ton
of them, like bean pulses, nuts, and seeds. They're all
fantastic protein choices, and they're much easier to carry, store,
or even prepare than animal proteins.
Speaker 3 (33:08):
Assuming that you pair them appropriately to make a complete protein,
like in the case of beans, pairing them with rice.
That's right, all right, So what would you say are
the best of the best for the plant based proteins?
Speaker 2 (33:18):
Well, and this might be biased. According to the Bean Institute,
which apparently is a thing, beans contained between twenty one
percent and twenty five percent protein by weight, and since
that's much higher than other sources of vegetable protein, you know,
the nut or seed options. I'd go with beans and
different beans packed different amounts of protein and other minerals,
with black beans, kidney beans, pinto, and soy tending to
(33:41):
provide the most. But that's the beauty of beans. No
matter which one you go with, it's going to be
a good source of protein and fiber, and it'll also
be fat free, sodium free, and cholesterol.
Speaker 1 (33:50):
Fruit looks like beans for the wind. It felt like
you said beans a lot.
Speaker 3 (33:54):
I do want to mention though, that, just like with
eating too many fruits or or something like kale, there
is so thing as too much protein. It's actually called
protein poisoning, or some people call it rabbit starvation. I'd
never heard of this, but just saw it in the research,
and it occurs when forty five percent or more of
your calorie intake is derived from protein. And the nickname
actually has nothing to do with malnourished bunnies or anything
(34:17):
like that. It comes from the early North American explorers
who sometimes survive solely on lean proteins such as rabbits,
and this would happen for weeks at a time, and
that I had often led to starvation because a person's
liver it can only process so many calories from lean proteins. Yeah,
so remember, no matter where you get your protein, don't
(34:37):
overdo it. The bulk of your calories should be coming
from fats and carbs and not protein.
Speaker 2 (34:42):
Yeah, that's a good tip. So there you have it.
There are two kinds of potatoes on our list, oats
or barley, kaylor spinach, milk or yogurt, avocados or berries
and salmon or beans. And if you have extra room,
maybe a package of flaming hot Cheetos.
Speaker 3 (34:57):
Yeah, that would cover all of your nutritional bases. Again,
whether you want to or even whether you should stick
to a limited diet like this, that's a whole different matter,
maybe for a different episode one.
Speaker 2 (35:07):
Day totally, because while it makes sense on paper that
we can restrict our diets, that's not really how things
play out in real life. So, for example, there was
a study in two thousand and two where researchers took
data from fifty nine thousand women and found that those
who alternated sixteen to seventeen healthy foods through the diet
had a forty two percent lower mortality rate than those
who regularly ate between zero to eight healthy foods. So
(35:30):
even if you're eating mostly healthy foods like the ones
we listened today, you'll still be at a disadvantage if
you aren't varying what you eat.
Speaker 3 (35:37):
Yeah, and that actually tracks with an article I read
by a dietitian at Glasgow Caledonian University.
Speaker 1 (35:43):
Her name is Jenny Jackson.
Speaker 3 (35:44):
And she openly ad meants that while we know a
diet that includes a variety of vegetables is healthier than
eating just a few, we actually don't know exactly why
that's the case. As she puts it, quote, we don't
really know which foods are causing which effects. So while
you could work out exactly what you needed from macro nutrients,
you don't know exactly what you might be missing.
Speaker 4 (36:05):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (36:05):
I'd say the real strength of a thought experiment like
this is that it reminds us of the practical purpose
food serves. I mean, humans have evolved to value the
taste of food and the experience of eating way more
than any other species, which of course I'm grateful for,
But that focus on the sensory it can distract us
from food's true purpose, as feel for our lives.
Speaker 1 (36:23):
Yeah, I think that's exactly right.
Speaker 3 (36:25):
And you know, at a time when people are so
wrapped up with food as a social experience or as
a form of entertainment instagramming What's on your plate or
writing reviews on Yelp, but it is a little sobering
to think about food as this basic necessity. But picking
apart the pros and cons of individual foods, it does
give you a sense of not only what we're putting
in our bodies, but why we're doing it.
Speaker 2 (36:46):
That's definitely true. But you know, one thing you can
always safely consume without having to overthink it.
Speaker 1 (36:51):
I'm really hoping this is not about breast milk.
Speaker 2 (36:53):
Again, they're part time genius fact off And what do
you say, Because we're both surprised by how nutritious the
potato is, we turned this into the Potato Edition.
Speaker 1 (37:02):
All right, sounds good to me.
Speaker 2 (37:14):
So. According to a history of Greece, I found, there's
an often told story that, in order to popularize potatoes
in eighteen twenty eight, new governor Johnny Kappadistas tried to
give potatoes away, but the people were totally uninterested. So
we've placed armed guards in front of a shipment as
they were loaded off docks to make them seem more important.
And when the guards turned away or left their positions,
(37:34):
people just stole the potatoes. And that's how the potatoes
popularity spread there.
Speaker 3 (37:38):
Oh wow, But what's strange is that it isn't the
first time leaders tried to convince people to eat potatoes.
According to an article in Mental Floss, quote in the
late seventeen hundreds, in an effort to inspire their starving
subjects to plant the newly introduced vegetable, Marie Antoinette wore
potato flowers in her hair, and her husband, King Louis
the sixteenth wore them in his buttonholes. Move launched a
(38:00):
new fad, convincing French nobility to start wearing potato flowers.
The plant didn't have the intended effect. The lower classes
resented the propaganda and spurned the plant.
Speaker 2 (38:11):
So did you know that potato parties used to be
a thing in Japan and South Korea? Like teenagers would
go into McDonald's order two hundred dollars or more of
fries and then just spread them out on tables to
eat while they hung out.
Speaker 1 (38:23):
Actually, that sounds pretty delicious to me.
Speaker 4 (38:25):
I want to admit that.
Speaker 3 (38:26):
Well, did you know that mister Potato had was the
first toy advertised on television.
Speaker 2 (38:30):
I'd forgotten that. The craziest part to me was that
you actually used to provide your own potato.
Speaker 3 (38:36):
Yeah, well, since you knew that fact, how about this one?
Did you know that gardeners will sometimes put rose cuttings
into a potato, then plant the potato and the ground.
Speaker 2 (38:45):
Why is that?
Speaker 3 (38:46):
Well, the potatoes full of nutrients, so it can actually
help the rose grow.
Speaker 2 (38:50):
That's insane. Do you know that Garbachev's wife once tried
to impress a British minister by telling him that the
Soviets had more than three hundred ways to cook potatoes,
and when he doubted, she sent him a cookbook of
five hundred ways to cook a potato showed him.
Speaker 3 (39:05):
All right, Well, I mean, I guess with five hundred
recipes from Russia alone, we don't have to worry about
Pendulad and whether he gets his variety anymore. But all right,
I think because of that fact, I'm gonna let you
take home the championship belt this week. That's it for
today's part time Genius. If you enjoyed the show, feel
free to drop us a line on our twenty four
to seven fact hotline that's one eight four four pt Genius.
(39:25):
You can also send us a note part Time Genius
at HowStuffWorks dot com or find us on Facebook and Twitter.
And if you really really enjoyed the show, please give
us a review or a rating on Apple Podcasts or
wherever you listen to your podcast. Thanks so much, thanks
(39:51):
again for listening. Part Time Genius is a production of
How Stuff Works and wouldn't be possible without several brilliant
people who do the important things we couldn't even begin
to Understands McNeil does the editing thing. Noel Brown made
the theme song and does the mixy mixy sound thing.
Speaker 2 (40:04):
Jerry Roland does the exec producer thing.
Speaker 3 (40:07):
Gabeluesier is our lead researcher, with support from the research
Army including Austin Thompson, Nolan Brown and Lucas Adams and Eves.
Speaker 2 (40:13):
Jeff Cook gets to show to your ears, good job, Eves.
Speaker 3 (40:16):
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And if you really really like what you've heard, maybe
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Speaker 1 (40:20):
A good review for us. Do we forget Jason Jason,
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