Editor's note: Laura Schmidt and her colleagues, Robert Lustig and Claire Brindis, are the authors of "The toxic truth about sugar." To read the full commentary, visit the science journal Nature.

I am a medical sociologist, which means I study the health of whole societies. I've spent more than 20 years studying the best possible ways to address alcohol problems in societies - what works and what doesn't to protect people from harm.

I work as a professor in the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine and at the UCSF Clinical and Translational Science Institute. This allows me to connect with other scientists who come from very different backgrounds but who want to work together on big problems - think of a Manhattan Project, only one focused on protecting health through the collaboration of scientists who study everything from tiny cells to entire societies.

So three years ago, a pediatric endocrinologist named Rob Lustig walks into my office and asks for my help. Rob tells me that he's finding many connections between the metabolism of fructose (sugar) and ethanol (alcohol) in his work on metabolic functioning, liver damage and the obesity epidemic.

Read the full story - Opinion: Why we should regulate sugar like alcohol

5@5 is a daily, food-related list from chefs, writers, political pundits, musicians, actors, and all manner of opinionated people from around the globe.

Editor's Note: Patrick Connolly is the Executive Chef at The Kitchen NYC. Patrick’s brother, Dan Connolly, is a starting offensive lineman for the New England Patriots.

Generally speaking, the Super Bowl is about three things: food, drink and excessive partaking of each (for a Sunday). This year is a little different for me as my youngest brother Daniel is the starting center for the Patriots (he’s the guy who hikes the ball to Gisele Bundchen’s husband).

Normally, I’d be spending the day in the kitchen then plopping myself on the couch with a sandwich the size of a coffee table just in time for a butchered rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" by an American Idol. This year, however, I’ll be spending the day with my family on the heated streets of Indianapolis and plopping myself on a cool plastic seat in Lucas Oil Stadium.

So, as I lose my voice during yet another big championship game I’ve road-tripped to, I hope you will enjoy two or 20 cold beers, something nice between pieces of bread and a big ol’ plate of nachos. Perhaps Doritos and shredded cheddar in the microwave is your style? Or maybe you’re a nacho overachiever and pull off a nine-layer dip? But if you’re looking for something a little outside the box, may I suggest one of the following:

Five Nacho Variations
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There are no rules when it comes to food for Moto sous chef and "Top Chef: Texas" contestant Richie Farina.

Tune in to CNN at 2 p.m. E.T. on Sunday, February 5, to see more of the avant-garde cuisine of Richie Farina and Homaro Cantu on The Next List.
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If there's dip on the table, you know you're at a party. If there are at least three varieties present, that party is probably for the Super Bowl - and lucky you.

People don't go making dips all willy-nilly for a weeknight meal or a prim Sunday brunch. They're reserved for gloppy, sloppy abandon in the company of other revelers and these dips should not hold back. We repeat - they should not hold back.

Food editors like us are bombarded with recipe suggestions from celebrity chefs and product representatives touting non-fat, mayo-free, cheese-free, joy-free options for game day. We maintain that if you're eating sensibly the other 365 days of 2012 (okay - 362, because what fun is life if you can't go a little nuts on Thanksgiving, your birthday or New Year's Eve?), a little sour cream on a Frito isn't going to spell your demise. (Though apparently insufficient safety procedures might.)

So go ahead and get dippy with it, and scoop up a few of our favorite recipes from dip devotees Richard Blais, Eva Longoria, John Currence, Marcela Valladolid and our very own recipe boxes.
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Sink your teeth into today's top stories from around the globe.

• When it comes to potato chips, you can have it your way - but don't get crazy! - Guardian

• Game meat for the game. It's going to be a wild party! - CHOW

• Virginia Mericle suffered from agoraphobia until her passing in 2009. She left behind 45,000 menus, one of her only connections to the outside world. - The Atlantic

• 100 years ago, California Chardonnay was born. - Reuters

• We know our calculus: 0.5 NaCl + 1g MgSO4 + 6.4 g Ca(OH) + 3.1 g of NaHCO3 + 2.3 g Mg(OH)2 + good ol' fashioned H20 = homemade mineral water. - Gilt Taste

While you're frying up some eggs and bacon, we're cooking up something else: a way to celebrate today's food holiday.

Celebrate the Last Frontier of desserts - February 1 is National Baked Alaska Day!

Enjoy this chilly kick-off to February and carve yourself up a slice of Baked Alaska, the mysterious dessert with a funky name. Try strawberry-lemon Baked Alaska and you'll be in ice-cream-and-cake heaven.

If you've ever looked at a Baked Alaska and just cocked your head to the side in puzzlement, let's break it down for you: Mounds of ice cream are piled up in a dish lined with sponge cake slices. The whole mess is slathered with meringue and baked in a hot oven for a short time, just to firm the meringue.
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Pssst! Got a sec to chat?

We are utterly thrilled when readers want to hang out and talk – whether it's amongst themselves or in response to pieces we've posted. We want Eatocracy to be a cozy, spirited online home for those who find their way here.

Consider the daily Coffee Klatsch post as your VIP lounge – the primary comments thread for readers who'd like to chat about topics not related to the articles we're running. That way, everyone knows where to find each other, and each post's comments section remains on topic.
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