Body acts as brewery so drunk driving charge dismissed and other food and drink news

New York drink driver says her body is a brewery - A US woman in New York state has avoided drink-driving charges after arguing that she suffers from a rare condition called "auto-brewery syndrome". The 35-year-old schoolteacher told the court that her digestive system sometimes converts food into alcohol. After her arrest, her doctor conducted tests that found that high levels of yeast in her intestines ferment high-carbohydrate foods. Prosecutors are seeking to have the charges against the woman reinstated. "She can register a blood alcohol content that would have you or I falling down drunk, but she can function," her lawyer Joseph Marusak told the Buffalo News.

Spain Has Little Appetite for Truffles, but Plenty for the Truffle Trade - Last year, France produced 56 metric tons of truffles, compared with a peak of 1,040 tons in 1904, according to historical data from the French federation of truffle growers. At the same time, Spain’s production has been growing rapidly — to about 45 tons a year. Luckily for the French, and others, however, Spanish cuisine rarely uses the truffle. In fact, about 95 percent of what Spain produces is exported to France and other markets — even if some of it gets relabeled as Périgord truffle.

Netflix And Chew: How Binge Watching Affects Our Eating Habits

‘The Diet Myth,’ ‘The Good Gut’ and ‘The Hidden Half of Nature’ - Using the improved detection capacity of genetic sequencing techniques, scientists have discovered that 100 trillion microscopic creatures live in and on the body, influencing everything from the intensity of our immune responses and our moods to our dietary preferences and propensity to gain weight.

‘The War on Alcohol,’ by Lisa McGirr - McGirr makes two major contributions to the historical record. First, she vividly shows how enforcers targeted immigrant and black communities. ... Second, McGirr tells us that Prohibition gave birth to big government — an argument that could have a major impact on how we read American political history. The audacious effort to remake drinking habits required unprecedented authority: Federal police powers grew, jail construction boomed and courts turned to plea ­bargaining and parole.