Food Values Mimic Societal Values

Our culture is rushed.  Many of us spend our days without taking the time to take a breath let alone an entire meal. Eating on the run has become not only acceptable but necessary.  Horwitz’s article on ‘eating on the edge’ uses different examples to bring together many issues that are prevalent in our culture such as obesity, rushed lifestyle, pressure to do everything, missed social contact.  The idea that ‘grazing not eating at fixed meal times’ has led to many of these things really helps to show how food culture relates directly to our society and cultural identity.  Our values in food result or directly impact our values in life and lifestyles.  One can see that through the astronauts that this is innate in American culture and not a world wide phenomenon.  The pressure of the american dream and our desire to get one step ahead of our peers leads to missed meals, missed social contact and missed experiences.  

The european astronauts were found to have a pattern of getting together and sitting down at a set time for meals whereas the americans often snacked throughout the day and began eating alone or while attending to other business.  This can be seen in the college lifestyle that eating on the run, between classes and alone because of different timetables than friends becomes often necessary.  At the same time though, when eating alone or quickly becomes a habit, the concept of a family meal, a well cooked home meal with friends and family becomes a much more special occasion.  Something people spend time working for and something that is looked forward to.  Spending time with friends and family should be made a priority more often. As Horwitz says ‘occasions when food is an additive to a situation’ when he says is ‘eating on the edge’ but really I don’t believe food is the issue rather we should take time to sit down with friends or family, talk face to face about the day and relax.  Whether or not food is involved should be secondary rather food is just a good indicator that our social contact is being diminished throughout our lifestyles.