Food for Thought

We have a wide variety of food choices today. There are conventionally grown foods, organic foods and restaurants that serve organic only, vegetarian, raw, etc. We are exposed to so many different cultural cuisines that lend variety to the foods we consume, prepare, and purchase. I think the current American diet allows for a lot of versatility.  

Growing up, I remember my diet consisting largely of what was available at the local supermarkets. Most of the processed foods contained a lot of salt, hydrogenated oils, sugar, and preservatives. The foods were typical of the commercial American diet. I remember our most common foods such as spaghetti, meatloaf, Campbell soup, Hostesss cup cakes, chips and pasteries, although I didn't care much for sodas. What we knew was that the four main food groups are important for a healthy and well rounded diet. However, it did not address issues such as the quality of foods or processed and packaged foods. So we would put a handful of potato chips on the side and that would be our carbohydrate requirement. My mother was more in favor of natural foods but we tended to adopt the current trends of eating. We did have homestyle meals like chicken soup and stuffed cabbage corned beef,etc. and plenty of fruits and vegetables. 

Thanksgiving was probably the busiest time when we gathered to help out in preparing the evening meal. Other than that we were often preoccupied with other things and meal times were not much of an event. I've since come to appreciate how some cultures utilize meal times as a time for relaxation and socializing. It adds another dimension to life. I think there is value in some cultures that hold significance to harvest, ceremony and preparation. 

When foods are grown locally there is a community that supports and is more conscience of the environment. Local farmers tend to care more about the crops they produce for their community. They are often more in touch with the communities needs and in some areas such as the coast of California and Oregon there are numerous small farms that sell their crops when it is seasonally best. This provides the consumer with better quality foods.   

What I also find is that some diets are more concerned with convenience and lack nutritional value. The diet I grew accustomed to no longer appeals to me because I now feel healthier eating other foods. Knowing this I try to choose foods that are more nutritious in nature. This would include natural foods and not fortified foods. And have recently started to read about and have tried making foods that are healthier for the body. For some time it was my thought that I would have to give up flavorful or hearty foods to eat healthy. Now I'm finding that this is not true and am very interested in trying new recipes and find that not all are difficult or time consuming. Some are very simple, have less calories, and are surprisingly flavorful and nourishing for the body and mind. 

I think the issue of nutrition is different from individual to individual and from culture to culture. From my own experience I tend to rotate between certain foods and eating habits. I might stick to vegetables and grains and very little meat and mostly fish. Or depending on my energy level and how my body feels I might switch to mostly fruits and vegetables. I don't often have meat as my main course. The changing of my diet resembles the Chinese theory of eating different foods for changing seasons and adjusting to the bodies needs. 

It seems that our culture is constantly reinventing specialized diet, such as the Low Carb Diet, South Beach Diet, etc. And we go through phases of what's popular such as Thai, Mediteranean, Japanese, to name a few. Because we are constantly experimenting, I feel the American diet will always be changing.