How Technology Influences Eating Habits
It goes without saying that technology has completely changed how we lead our lives; however, not many of us know just how much it has impacted our eating habits. For instance, it’s now commonplace for people to take pictures of their food and post them on social media, with some influencers establishing an entire career based on a feed full of food. In fact, as many as 39% of people have admitted that social media plays a role in influencing their eating behaviours. Our eating habits are something we’ve been concerned with since the dawn of time, as demonstrated by Ramadan and other religious fasts, but what exactly is the impact of technology?
Smart Technology Cooking
In this day and age, our kitchens are filled with smart technology, which has obviously transformed how we prepare our meals. From slow cookers to air fryers, gone are the days of the only cooking appliance in our kitchens being the oven. As a result, making healthy and affordable meals is easier than it ever has been, as we can simply throw everything we need into one pot and be on our way. What’s more, even the traditional appliances, like ovens, are smarter than they ever have been, sending us notifications via our smartphones and also allowing us to control them digitally.
The Encouragement of Healthy Cooking
Whether it’s via our smartphones, smartwatches, or Fitbits, we’re so often encouraged to track what we eat. There are various apps that are designed exactly for this purpose, wherein we monitor the calories and contents of the things that we eat. What’s more, doing this is easier than it ever has been before. In the early stages of these apps, we were required to relentlessly search for the correct food item; however, it’s now possible to scan foods via their barcode to streamline the entire process. Furthermore, we’re able to research more extensively via the internet regarding the health status of our foods.
The Potential Negative Impacts
As with anything, technology is a double-edged sword, providing both positives and negatives in regard to our eating habits. From problematic internet use comes a higher development rate of eating disorders, such as binge eating, bulimia, anorexia, loss of control eating, and food preoccupation. For instance, social media provides us with a never-ending platform on which we’re able to compare ourselves to others and set unrealistic expectations. Something that we’ve never had to worry about before is developing a healthy relationship with food and technology in tandem, making this a relatively new concept.
Nutritional Intervention
Modern technology has allowed us to form statistics regarding our food intake and the effects of this. For instance, roughly 19.7% of American children are obese, meaning that around 14.7 million children are affected. As a result, nutritional interventions need to be administered, and these are being enabled by modern technology. This technology makes it easier to educate parents and children alike about the importance of healthy diets and the adverse effects of obesity.
Foodie Social Media Platforms
Last but not least, technology exposes us to an array of dishes that we may never have encountered before. Not only does this contribute to our healthy eating regimes, but it also expands our palates and exposes us to various cultures. In addition to unique dishes you can make at home, it’s also easy to find new restaurants, allowing you to try new foods and support local businesses. Food is no longer just a means of survival; it creates a community and it’s an artform. Social media is one of the largest technological impacts in regard to food.
