Mary Maxfield Food As Thought Summary

967 Words2 Pages

Student Name: Mia Bozeman ENG 111 Fall 2023 Paper 2 First Draft. Guilt Trips And Fad Dieting: How Commercial And Cultural Influences Affect Our Eating Habits. In her article “Food as Thought: Resisting the Moralization of Eating,” author Mary Maxfield explores the relationship between cultural influences and our relationship with food. Maxfield believes that self-proclaimed experts have exploited Americans' desire to live a healthy lifestyle by commercializing dieting and eating habits. The writer supports her claims by pointing out that other cultures indulge in what would be considered less balanced eating habits, yet tend to be healthier than most Americans. Additionally, Maxfield argues that diet and health experts often contradict themselves …show more content…

Race, religion, ethnicity and geographic location are all cultural influences on our diets. For example, those practicing Islam or Judaism have strict diet restrictions that correlate with their religious beliefs. Asian and Latin Americans have distinct dishes and flavors that are signatures of their culture and homelands. Mid-Westerners enjoy lots of hearty casseroles and Dutch-inspired dishes, while Southern Americans enjoy soul food staples and sweet tea. We can zoom in further to specific states, towns and boroughs; citing Chicago for their deep-dish pizza, Baltimore for crab cakes and pit beef, or North Carolina for its BBQ ( this one can even be dissected into eastern and western, it’s a pretty serious debate!). These dishes that are special to us exemplify the huge influence that our culture has on our identities as well. We should all be able to celebrate these unique delicacies without fear of judgement or remorse afterwards. Negative thoughts imposed by the health and diet industry would have us avoiding a lot of these options, and therefore, negatively impact how we view ourselves. It is interesting to note that there are both positive and negative cultural influences related to the same foods, no wonder most Americans second guess themselves when it comes to their dietary habits! Fundamentally, food is something that should be enjoyed. All of our holidays, bad days, and special moments are centered around food. Opinions of experts and nutritionists are bound to vary and change. People will always struggle with obesity, anorexia, diabetes and the stigma attached to weight. Saying that it is wrong to consume or not consume certain food only contributes to these stereotypes and unhealthy attitudes towards food in general which could exacerbate the issue for those already suffering. By taking the moralization out of food, we can dismiss the critics

Open Document