Food Fight

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Food Fight

In America, one would be hard pressed to find a town which did not support at least one McDonald’s, Burger King or Wendy’s. Pizza parlors are a necessity in college towns. Ice cream shops are abuzz with customers of all ages after dark. And hey, who ever heard of a movie without popcorn?

The increasing visibility and importance of food in our culture has been a phenomenon. Food began as a necessity of life. It was the source of energy, which allowed the body to grow and prosper, and for hunters and gatheerrs to survive. In modern times, the role of food in everyday life has taken on a life of its own, from the blue-ribbon palate pleasers tickling taste buds to political statements drawn in chocolate to social drinking. The resulting uses of food are as diverse as the different foods it encompasses and as inseparable from a person’s daily life as breathing. How can something so simple as energy-intake convey have become such a large and varied part of everyday life?

Food as a family affair is largely determined by the family’s lifestyle; conversely, knowing a family’s eating patterns says a lot about their lifestyle. Sitcoms portray meals as a leisurely occasion for the family to sit down together to enjoy savory foods fresh from the oven, which the loving wife has been tending for the past two hours. Then reality sinks in. The increasing popularity of TV dinners, microwave gourmet, and prepackaged snacks caters to a family without the time for such luxury. Why cook when you can heat up a frozen entrée of teriyaki beef or homestyle apple pie in just four minutes? As the tendency for both spouses to be employed full-time has increased from 33% of families in 1972 to 67% in 1998, according to the National Data...

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...heir lives before they can begin to conquer the problems which have arisen from it.

As food has become increasingly available, society has found new ways of playing with it, spinning out brand loyalty, hobbies, programming and cults dedicated to food. Before people embrace these new food novelties, however, they must first as a culture establish the terms of their new relationships with food. Only then can we both enjoy the delights of the kitchens without destroying our health and self-image in the process.

Sources Cited

foodies.com

forfoodies.com

Eric Schossler's Fast Food Nation (2001)

“Body Image Statistics” womensissues.about.com/cs/bodyimage/a/bodyimagestats.htm

“Overweight and Obesity Fact Sheet” www.surgeongeneral.gov/topics/obesity/calltoaction/fact_adolescents.htm

“The Emerging 21st entury” cloud9.norc.uchicago.edu/dlib/sc-42.htm.

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