Sarah mentioned yesterday that there are some healthy foods that work as mood elevators, but those foods aren't necessarily what people turn to when they're feeling low. A new study calculated that people who are sad "eat larger amounts of foods they consider tasty, but unhealthy."

The trial was put on by researchers at the University of Mississippi, who invited participants to watch either a tearful romance, Love Story, or a romantic comedy, Sweet Home Alabama, and monitored the amount of buttered, salted popcorn they ate. Unhappy viewers, those watching Love Story, are 28 percent more than their Reese Witherspoon-watching counterparts. A second experiment drove the point even further home by demonstrating that students reading about a tragedy (accidental deaths caused by a fire, not the Greek sort) were 4 times more likely to reach for M&Ms than raisins when both were set out as options.

It is certainly something to keep in mind the next time you're heading to the theater and are wondering whether to get popcorn and candy or skip the snack bar altogether.

Animal welfare is clearly a hot topic in the supermarket these days, as anyone can see just by taking a look at all the different types of labels and certifications that are meant to convince us that the animals we are eating led full, happy lives before they became dinner. The current list includes labels such as "free farmed," "certified humane," "cage free" and "free range," among others. Whole Foods is adding a new term to this group: animal compassionate.

"Animal compassionate" sets some of the following standards of care for animals: "Castration of sheep prohibited; electric prod on beef cattle permitted in emergencies; tail docking of pigs not allowed."

But in the end, these labels - many of which are developed by animal welfare groups or, as in this case, the stores that carry the products - are really just another security blanket for consumers who like the idea of an animal playing in a field and looking happy. It makes them feel good, like they're doing the right thing from the animal's perspective. It might also confuse consumers, many of whom already have difficulty choosing between organic, hormone/antibiotic free and grass fed animals.