Stomach aches started bothering me when I was 16 years old. I was willing to do absolutely anything to get rid of them. Whether it was trying a new homeopathic remedy or giving up my favorite meal, it wasn’t a matter of whether or not I wanted to change something — I felt as if I had to.
Soon enough, I was prescribed a multitude of different diets I should try: gluten-free, low FODMAP (which eliminates certain sugars from the diet), and high-fiber were just a few. As I dove into these new diet plans, I realized I was not alone. New diet and food trends pop up more and more each day.
Stomach aches, weight loss, red or itchy skin, aversion to meat, ethical concerns, allergies, and a plethora of other reasons have caused people to take part in different food trends sweeping the nation. From a more artistic point of view, restaurants and brands have begun catering to foodie needs.
There are vegan restaurants, such as Araya’s Place and Pizza Pi on the Ave, and for those with gluten-free and paleo diets, Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods seem to cater quite nicely. It’s now becoming lucrative for restaurants and grocery stores to keep up with all the food trends.
But there are so many unanswered questions associated with these trends. Why do people jump on the food trend bandwagon so easily? Do these diets actually affect one’s health at all? And how does this influence the massive amounts of food waste our country produces?
To answer these questions, starting at the origin of food trends is useful. Fads associated with food are not a new occurrence. Vegetarianism in certain parts of the world is a good example.
“Vegetarianism has a long history in India,” Katie Gillepsie, a UW CHID professor, said, “which is significantly rooted in the practice of ahimsa [nonviolence].”
Although, Gillepsie added, it is difficult to follow patterns within the movement during the fourth, fifth, and sixth centuries, because there is no record measuring the quantity of vegetarians.
Nonetheless, the movement was still there, and had a clear motive: the desire to remain nonviolent. This movement still exists in the same form today, as well as veganism.
“Veganism is about an ethical commitment to nonviolence toward animals, which is not something that lends well to fad diets,” Gillepsie said.
But she contrasts that with the popular fad of undertaking a plant-based diet.
While veganism is mostly associated with the debabted morality of killing animals for food, a plant-based diet deals more with health concerns. As part of the backlash to obesity in our country, a health-obsessed clan of people has formed, which may be the leading cause for the emergence of some of these food trends.
New research shows certain types of processed meats may cause cancer and heart disease, and the diet trends eliminating these processed foods provide an inherently healthier lifestyle. While some of the trends do produce healthy eating habits, these diets tend to produce obsessive habits that are difficult to follow. The paleo diet, for example, promotes well-balanced meals without any processed oils and chemicals that have been correlated with diseases.
However, new research from the U.S. News and World Report reported the paleo diet to not be the least effective in comparison with other common diet trends. This can be attributed to the diet’s tendency to foster inaccurate information and promote the consumption of high levels of saturated fats. Gluten-free and plant-based diets also struggle with this, because the substitutes used for gluten sometimes contain more processed materials than the original gluten options.
So, in terms of health, each diet trend has its pros and cons, yet we still group ourselves into these trends, despite the faults they possess.
Sociology offers some explanations as to why humans tend to insert themselves into certain food fads. By putting ourselves in certain groups, we show that we are hierarchially superior to those who are in the outgroup. Yet when the outgroup begins to take part in the same trend, the ingroup must create a new one.
Food trends can be thought of in this way as well. They are inspired by the desire to use a trend as a way to separate oneself from the rest of society.
The ingroup explanation for why certain trends rise and fall makes sense, but there are resulting externalities. The trends we participate in have direct effects on the environment, as well as people who are in the far reaches of the outgroup. Those are the people who struggle to have enough food with or without a trend attached to it.
Food Not Bombs is an organization with whom UW professor David Giles works.
“Exclusively, what they do is they find things that capitalism has abandoned and revalue them,” Giles said. “My research is taking that as a window to look at how we value food and also how we value people.”
Giles explained that some trends may actually aid in valuing both food and people. Food trends make people think about their food more: Where was it made? Is it organic? Is it free-range? Is it grass-fed?
When food fads rally around local farmers, it is especially positive for the value of food and the people it affects. Other trends, such as veganism, automatically reduce one’s carbon footprint by eliminating animal product externalities.
Whether the food we choose to eat is for health, ethical, or other reasons, it is important to recall what we put in our mouths affects much more than just us. Cooking our own food, as well as eating out, should be a thoughtful process rather than a thoughtless one.
Reach writer Rebecca Gross at arts@dailyuw.com. Twitter: @becsgross
