A 2020 article in the British Medical Journal focused on obesity as a risk factor for contracting COVID-19. The authors made a somewhat shocking (but not surprising) statement: “The obesity pandemic is the result of living in food environments where it is difficult not to overconsume calories.”
This is huge. How many times have we blamed ourselves for overeating, convinced that we were nothing more than greedy human beings who lacked the willpower not to eat an entire cookie the size of a dinner plate? How many of us have secretly wished that glazed doughnuts would not be inches from our fingers on the table at every…single…office meeting? Or that that bag of M&Ms would not be staring cheerfully at us from precise eye-level in the checkout line at the grocery store? We have been deluded into thinking that if we could just say no, then we would finally be sleek, strong, healthy, attractive…and not ashamed of the reflection in the mirror.
The bottom line is this: It’s not our fault that we like to eat, or that we like to eat tasty food full of refined carbohydrates, saturated fat and sugar. We are hardwired to enjoy eating these foods, because we are a species that, genetically speaking, operates as if a famine is lurking around the corner. In other words, it’s time to stop beating ourselves up for acting like human beings! Besides, what would life be like without giant cookies, glazed doughnuts and M&Ms? These are foods we certainly want in our lives, but not in our faces every time we leave our houses. In short, we are not to blame for obesity. Neither is the food itself. What is to blame is our current food culture.
Our food culture is shaped by the attitudes, beliefs and practices that surround the production and consumption of food. Food culture incorporates our ethnicity and cultural heritage and provides a mechanism of communication with others both externally and within our families and communities. In the US, our culture of convenience and instant gratification greatly influences our food culture.
Here’s an example: Remember a time when you went to a gas station to purchase, oddly, gas, because that was the only thing available at a gas station? Or when you ate meals that were cooked at home because there wasn’t a hot deli specializing in chicken tenders and hot dogs at the grocery store? Remember when your mother threw a fit about having a snack at 4 p.m. because you were going to “ruin your dinner”? Nowadays, cheap, convenient food is everywhere. We are constantly reminded of its presence and eating at just about any time of day (or all day) is totally acceptable, if not expected.
So how do we go about changing the food culture of endless and often empty calorie consumption? Certainly, there needs to be change from the top (in other words, from the government). There are increasing calls for changes to taxes (think soda tax) and subsidies (for fruit and vegetable growers), among other movements. Unfortunately, enacting legislation can be a slow and complex process. So instead, for all of us, it starts at home. We must focus on changing the food environment from the bottom up. In other words, it starts at home.
Interested in reclaiming your personal food culture? Here are some suggestions to get started:
Try your hand at cooking things from scratch. Do you ever wonder how often it’s “OK” to eat chicken tenders? The answer is … as often as you’re willing to make them completely from scratch. More likely than not, there will be two results: 1) when you have to cut up, season, coat and bake everything by hand, you won’t do it as often, and 2) when you do put in the effort, the food you make will be a lot more nutritious, because you will be limited to ingredients you can purchase from a store rather than ultra-refined fillers and additives.
Make your environment work for you. Part of the reason we eat calorie-dense, low-nutrient foods is because we constantly see them. Make it a goal to clear your kitchen countertops of bags of chips, candy, cereal boxes, etc. Put these things into a cupboard that’s not easily accessible (such as that cupboard over your refrigerator). Better yet, leave those foods at the grocery store, and stock your kitchen with plenty of vegetables, fruits, whole grains and lean sources of protein. Put these foods where you will frequently see them and be reminded to eat them, e.g., a fruit bowl on the counter. Consider rearranging your refrigerator and placing fresh vegetables at eye level.
Set standards regarding when and where you eat. For example, consider making your TV room, bedroom, office, car, etc. a food-free zone. Eating only in the kitchen or dining room can significantly reduce the amount of time we spend doing mindless eating, thereby reducing calorie intake.
Let’s use these suggestions as a springboard to reclaim our food culture. Who’s with me?
