In Michael Pollan’s book, “In the Defense of Food”, Pollan states “Eat real food, mostly plants, not too much”. His three rules on how to eat have good intentions, but they have created a culture of food shaming in society. However, society has taken his book to the extreme with nutritionism and health. For instance, many people believe that they shouldn’t bother buying vegetables unless they are organic and locally grown; people who eat fast food occasionally are shamed, and are deemed unhealthy; and those who eat anything packaged are “sentencing themselves to cancer”.
However, Pollan does not take into account that most families do not have the means to purchase all organic, locally grown produce for all of their meals. People want to buy better food, but paying an extra three dollars per gallon for milk is not feasible for everyone. It is important to keep “healthy” in perspective and educate people on how to buy the right food for their money. There is the perception that to be healthy, you have to eat perfectly and follow a strict diet. Health is not “one size fits all”, and some people prefer to have wheat and gluten in their diet, and others feel better without it. Companies have been able to take advantage of diets, and products are labeled and marketed as “healthy” and “natural”, when they were just meeting the basic FDA nutrition standards.
Overall, it is important to focus on real food rather than nutritional food. By moving towards healthy eating patterns and focusing on everything in moderation, the culture around food will be more positive and simplistic.