Food and Culture, Essay Example

Introduction

Culture is defined as a set of attitudes, values, beliefs, and behaviors shared by a group of people, communicated from one generation to the next through language or other forms of communication (Ward, 2005).Culture affects all aspects of one’s life. Culture can determine where one lives, what type of job one has, attitude towards education, how one dress, and even what one eats. Both historical and ethnic influences can affect ones culture and food choices. Many people in North America have cultures that stem from other places, like Europe, Africa, Asia, and Latin America. When the settles arrived in North America from these various places they brought along with them foods and customs. Culture can be learned and transformed by society (Ward, 2005). Culture affects each person’s life in different ways by dictating one’s behavior, personality, and values; thus culture is the main determinant one’s food choice.

Religious Beliefs

Different cultures encourage and discourage the consumption of various types of foods. Likewise, a person’s religion has a great affect on the type of food they may or may not eat. Most cultures disapprove of the consumption of alcohol during pregnancy or breast-feeding. A person’s religious beliefs are a part of their culture. One’s religion may be one of the most influential components of food choice. In Hindu and Buddhist religions, pork and beef is a forbidden food because it is considered to be a unclean meat. There are even ancient scriptures that prohibit the consumption of these animals. As a result, more than 90 percent of people who practice this religion have excluded these meats from their diets (Ward, 2005). All other meats consumed by people practicing this religion most be kosher or halal. This means that prayers by appointed people must be prayed over these animals before they will be fit for consumption by people of this religion. However, in contrast to these strict guidelines, Christians and Catholics are allowed to consume any type of meat they desire.

Childhood

Growing up in a distinctive culture will affect one choice of food. Some food traditions are healthy and others are not. Most female grow and prepare foods for their families similar to the food their mothers prepared when they were young. Evidence supports that people from certain cultures are more apt to have various health risks. For example, southern African Americans are known for soul food. Using foods like ham hocks, dressing, and fat meat are often the culprits behind heart disease (DeSoucey, 2010). Nonetheless, these types of foods are comfort foods that remind people of family and home. People of African American descent often remind each other that their parents ate foods like those because they could not afford or did not have access to any other food.

Personal Factors

Personal factors can affect one’s food choices as well. People who are living with low socio-economic status often have limited food choices. These people tend to buy only the necessities or food that can provide quantity. Unfortunately, these foods are not the best health choice.  Cost can be a primary determinant for food choices in low income individual. Low-income groups have a greater tendency to consume unbalanced diets and in particular have low intakes of fruit and vegetables (Harris & Gerkin, 1997). Nonetheless, having adequate financial means does not automatically equate to better eating habits. One’s educational level can also influence diets. Higher levels of education and nutrition knowledge are strongly correlated (Harris & Gerkin, 1997).  Finally, social status also determines food choices. One’s social status determines the type of job they work, television shows they watch, and even the type of music they listen to. People are influenced in the food choices they make. Television and radio commercials are often geared towards influencing people to consume certain foods. For example, more fast food commercials are aired at night than during the day (Harris & 1997). People who watch at least three hours of television a day are exposed to more than 10,000 food advertisements per year. Ninety-five percent of these commercials are for fast food, sodas, cereal, and candy (Harris & 1997).

Social Life

The company one keeps can also affect food choices, as well as geographical location. Often people may eat foods that they don’t normally eat while in a social setting or eat even when they are not hungry. Many people use dinner or luncheons as social gatherings (Darmon & Drenowski, 2008). Consequently, people who live in urban areas are more likely to eat fast food more often than people who live in rural areas. Fast food is a convenience for people who are busy and do not have time to prepare meals at home. Yet, urban areas have more variety to choose from when purchasing food. Urban areas have larger super markets and many farmers’ markets to choose from. They have access to fresh food, but many chose quick fast food. Contrarily, people in rural areas do not have as many choices when it comes to purchasing food. They usually have small grocery stores and limited fast food chains. However, a great deal of people in rural areas farm and raise animals to slaughter. They have access to fresh fruits and vegetables. People in rural areas have chicken farms that produce meat and eggs that can be used for their consumption (Darmon & Drenowski, 2008).

Conclusion

Many factors impact the type of foods a person may choose to consume. Culture directly affects the types of food a person eats because culture dictates all parts of one’s life. When choosing something to eat, one never really thinks about what is driving that decision. Education, social-status, environment, and geographic location play a dominant role in deciding what one will eat. Nonetheless, culture is something that can be adjusted and changed to fit the needs of a people. Many people in the United States are suffering from obesity, diabetes, and other diseases that are linked to poor diet. As a result, Americans are adjusting the way they eat, the amount, and how often they eat.

References

Darmon, N & Drenowski, A. (2008). Does social class predict diet quality? The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 87(1).

DeSoucey, M. (2010). Gastronationalism: Food traditions and authenticity. American Sociological Review, 75 (3).

Harris, C. E., & Gerkin, R. E. (1997). The effects of a multimedia system in supermarkets to alter shoppers’ food purchases. Journal of Health Psychology, 2, 209–223.

Ward, A (2005). Consumption and theories in practice. Journal of Consumer Culture, 5 (2).