Food Choices and the Obesity Epidemic

Society has significant problems with food choices today, enough that terms like "binge eating" and "fat-free" have become common vocabulary. Sadly, culture blames obesity on the individual. Consider the stereotype that overweight people are lazy, unmotivated, and gluttonous; many people hesitate to reject that statement. In brief, it is often accepted that an imperfect body reflects an imperfect person (Nutrition Action Healthletter, July-Aug. 1998).
Many factors influence our food choices. We are motivated by economics, physiological impulses, genetics, psychological notions, our environment and culture. Each of these affect the way we balance the value we place on taste, nutrition, cost, convenience and weight control when selecting food (Journal of the American Dietetic Association, Oct 1998). …