What does a healthy relationship to food look like?
What a great question. The truth is, it differs amongst individuals. For some, it may mean just eating the food you enjoy to be emotionally healthy. For others, it may suggest low carb, high-fat diets. Dear me, we shouldn’t say the latter around The Angry Chef. In his blog, Heart of the Problem, The Angry Chef discusses the issues regarding science and food. It is well documented that he utterly despises the idea of diet being the key to a healthy lifestyle. In fact, in this blog, he discusses what he describes as “The Golden Rule” for a healthy lifestyle. “Don’t be poor,” he says. 1
That got me thinking. What if there’s actually more to it? It’s not just that people are poor. It’s the fact that, when people are poor, they tend to make unhealthy decisions in regards to the food they eat. All I need to illustrate this point further is a stroll down my hometown, in the heart of South Auckland. The scent of KFC (Madeleine Chapman’s favourite) 2. The oil dripping from “Fish N’ Chips” wrapped in newspaper. Or do you prefer deep fried ICE CREAM?? It’s better than it sounds, trust me.
But why is this food consumed so much, if it is deemed to be ‘unhealthy?’ The answer is simple. Accessibility, and affordability. Not everyone in society can afford to eat healthily or to experience the luxurious fine dining experience. In this case, a healthy relationship with food is not only a matter of diet or economics. It’s also socially constructed. Socially constructed by the people around us.
Anyways, I’ll be right back! My Uber Eats is here…
Awesome blog post, you brought up some really good ideas.
I definitely agree that a healthy relationship with food is heavily influenced by a person’s perspective, heritage, community and the world that they live in. As much as we try to categorise everything into distinct little boxes, different people have different opinions on food, based on their social environment. Therefore, there’s no one perfect model for a healthy relationship with food.
However, it’s ironic how people are so quick to judge others and blame them for making ‘unhealthy’ choices, yet no one ever critiques the social system that actually drives those people to make those decisions. There’s a growing trend towards demonising or glorifying certain foods.
This morale comes from a world of privilege and is placed on food. It labels items as well as their consumers, as ‘good’, ‘bad’, ‘healthy’ or ‘unhealthy’. The system also drives people to shame those who make the ‘wrong’ decision and praise those who make the ‘right’ one. However, some people just don’t have the option to make ‘healthier’ choices, and they’re still punished for it.
I think it highlights the roots of inequality and the issue of power dynamics in our society, but how can we really make a difference in such a big world?