What influences what we eat?
(Discuss the many things that play a role in determining what we eat. These can include, but are not limited to: culture, religion, cost, environment, policy)
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National I Love Food Day
What we eat is influenced by a myriad of factors. These include cost, culture/religion, appeals to the senses, social factors, convenience, our backgrounds, personal experiences, our ages, and our genders. The majority of people in America are very cost-efficient. They like to know exactly where their money is going and if something deserves the price they have to pay. When they go to a grocery store and they see two of the same items, just under different brands, their first instinct is to go with the brand they’ve been using and has served its purpose. The original reasons they probably chose that brand was because either it was the cheaper brand or they saw it in advertisements. The factors of cost, personal experiences, and social aspects had a direct influence on what brand of food that person chose. In another example, when food appeals to somebody’s pathos, or emotion, there is a higher chance that person will eat that food. This appeal may come in the form of smell, taste, or appearance. When they see that the food looks good, smells good, or remember it tasting good, people are more likely to eat it.
Convenience is another factor in influencing what we eat. If you live in Italy, you’re more likely to have a Mediterranean diet versus a heavy, German, butter-based diet. This is because it is very difficult and often more expensive to get foreign food when another food is surrounding you in abundance. If you live in Massachusetts, you probably eat a lot more lobster than those who live in Iowa. This is because since Massachusetts is on the coast and is cold, it offers the optimum environment for lobsters to live in, versus land-locked Iowa. The resources and crops that are grown in your specific area are often the foods that you eat more because they’re easy and convenient to get. Since certain crops are in abundance in certain countries, this influence’s that country’s culture by defining their food. If you’re Asian, you’re influenced by your background and culture to eat Asian food. This is because it is the food that is most familiar to you. Religion also influences what you eat. For example, Muslim people don’t eat pork, so if you live in the Middle East, there is not much of an influence to eat pork.
The last two factors are gender and age. Females are normally more concerned with how they look and watching their weight. Therefore, females generally are influenced to eat more healthy foods, such as natural crops or low-fat options. Men, on the hand, are more influenced to eat food based on taste. Therefore, men tend to eat more sugary or fattening foods. At a young age, children do not know much about the differences between healthy and non-healthy options. Once they hit teenage years, children, especially girls start being picky about what types of food they eat. This is because they’re influenced by social factors such as caring about how they look and comparing themselves to others. People often choose foods that are recognized as normal, because foods offer a source of identity for them.
Convenience is another factor in influencing what we eat. If you live in Italy, you’re more likely to have a Mediterranean diet versus a heavy, German, butter-based diet. This is because it is very difficult and often more expensive to get foreign food when another food is surrounding you in abundance. If you live in Massachusetts, you probably eat a lot more lobster than those who live in Iowa. This is because since Massachusetts is on the coast and is cold, it offers the optimum environment for lobsters to live in, versus land-locked Iowa. The resources and crops that are grown in your specific area are often the foods that you eat more because they’re easy and convenient to get. Since certain crops are in abundance in certain countries, this influence’s that country’s culture by defining their food. If you’re Asian, you’re influenced by your background and culture to eat Asian food. This is because it is the food that is most familiar to you. Religion also influences what you eat. For example, Muslim people don’t eat pork, so if you live in the Middle East, there is not much of an influence to eat pork.
The last two factors are gender and age. Females are normally more concerned with how they look and watching their weight. Therefore, females generally are influenced to eat more healthy foods, such as natural crops or low-fat options. Men, on the hand, are more influenced to eat food based on taste. Therefore, men tend to eat more sugary or fattening foods. At a young age, children do not know much about the differences between healthy and non-healthy options. Once they hit teenage years, children, especially girls start being picky about what types of food they eat. This is because they’re influenced by social factors such as caring about how they look and comparing themselves to others. People often choose foods that are recognized as normal, because foods offer a source of identity for them.