If you live in the U.S., chances are, your first hint of fall isn’t a russet-colored leaf landing on the sidewalk—it’s the orange-wrappered candies taking over the aisles of your local grocery and convenience stores. Forget decorative gourds: it’s officially Halloween candy season! But how did a 2,000-year-old Celtic festival marking the sun's death and the ... Show More
Oct 7
Everything You Know About Metabolism Is Wrong
If you’ve heard of metabolism, you’ve probably heard endless tips and tricks to boost it, from working out to drinking green tea. The idea is that a slow metabolism leads to weight gain, and speeding it up makes it easier to shed pounds. But what if we told you that metabolic rat ... Show More
48 m
Sep 23
Durian Delight and Feijoa Fun: Adventures in Banned, Forgotten, and Unusual Fruit
This week on Gastropod, a feast of fruits! Specifically, feijoa and durian—and, if you haven’t heard of either, you’re not alone. Unlike the ubiquitous strawberry or banana, durian and feijoa are only popular in a handful of countries and almost unknown in the US, and we wanted t ... Show More
50m 46s
Oct 2020
SYMHC Classics: The History of Halloween Candy
Happy Halloween! To celebrate, we're revisiting a 2014 episode. Candy and Halloween go hand-in-hand, but when did candy become the standard for trick-or-treating, and who invented the holiday's most famous sweet treats like candy corn? Learn more about your ad-choices at https:/ ... Show More
30m 14s
Mar 2024
Awful Candy, Part One: Tootsie Rolls Saved the War -- and Divided the World
Whether or not you have a sweet tooth, odds are you probably have some strong opinions about candy. Following up (finally!) on their earlier Halloween conversation, Ben, Noel and Max explore some of the most divisive candies on the planet. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy ... Show More
31m 2s
Oct 2022
History of Halloween
There is no holiday more strongly associated with horror, with all things creepy, frightening, and supernatural, than Halloween. It's the time of year when creatures of legend come alive, on tv and movie screens, in kitschy decorations, as suffocating rubber masks in costume shop ... Show More
24m 28s