Food! A delicious(or not so delicious--depending who makes it) way
to nourish your body with the essential nutrients one needs. According
to
dictionary.com,food
is any nourishing substance that is eaten, drunk, or otherwise taken
into the body to sustain life, provide energy, promote growth, etc.
Although our bodies can go a few days without food, our minds and bodies
need food in order to sustain a healthy lifestyle. Food is everywhere
and anywhere one goes. Not only is it a means of living, it is also a
way to connect with others on a daily basis no matter what type of food
it is. Choosing this topic has made really understand that food brings
people together, depending on where you reside depends on the food that
particular place or area will offer, and being healthy and eating
nutritious food depends on the upbringing each person has--especially
with their parents, and most importantly, social economic status plays a
significant role on the food that one consumes. It is intriguing to know that something so simple, well-known, and consumed by people every single day such as food can have a significant underlying impact on the way society thinks as well as does when in taking food.
Food definitely brings people together. Whether it is at a party, a
get-together, a celebration, a date, or even dinner at home in a
Thursday night--food is a connector. No matter what country you are in,
what ethnicity you are, or what beliefs you might have-food has seemed
to bring us together since there was known life on earth. One could
connect through food by making and preparing the food, sharing recipes
on the type of food one intakes, or as simple as eating the food that
was made. This essential nourishing substance has had a great impact on
people due to it's ability to provide as well as balance with one
another, creating a body full of nutrients making sure a sustainable,
yet healthy life is being brought upon that particular person .
Depending on how you were brought up and taught by your legal guardian
allows for being healthy or not so healthy. Being raised with different
definitions of what eating healthy is may be a bit tough, but it is the
consensus on how each person should live their life in the healthiest
way. Through this way of a healthy lifestyle, people should try to live
it to their full potential.
Social economic status plays a significant role whenever any type of health
issue is brought up in any conversation. It is the foundation of how a
family makes, it is what makes them, them. Although it may be a bit
unfair to people of lower economic status, there are places I'm their
neighborhood that are known as food deserts. Food deserts are areas in a
neighborhood where little to no nutritious food can be found. There are
limited amounts of grocery stores and where there is on, there aren't
any vegetables or any other type of healthy foods. If and when there
happens to be some sort of healthy food, it is on the expensive side. It
is unfortunate to know that people that do not have large amounts of
money are being deprived of eating in a matter that can benefit them,
essentially saving their lives. In these poorer, lower-income areas,
there are also lots of fast-food restaurants as well as mini-marts and
liquor stores. Some of these fast-food areas have bullet-proof windows
where your food is ordered or are "food stamp friendly." It is amazing
that food has to go through a glass window first, before reaching the
customer. The company's fear against the consumer in poorer areas is way
more significant in comparison to those that live in middle to upper
middle class areas.
Places and
neighborhoods that are poorer are often exposed to different situations
in comparison to those that live in better areas. A single street can
divide someone from living in a not so well area to a decent area.
Something that one will see when in lower class neighborhoods are people
that sell goodies such as ice cream, corn, and shaved ice. Every child
that lives in that specific area knows the distinct sound it makes and
rush over to purchase their goodie. Another example of this is the
person that drives a big white truck, typically decorated with fruit and
vegetables that sell groceries and junk food. These people never ever
go to Hollywood or Beverly Hills, for example, they stick to whatever
they know as well as what their comfort zone is. On the opposite side of
the spectrum, places that are poorer like this, do not have the same
restaurants that people of a higher status do. One example is frozen
yogurt. Frozen yogurt has gotten really trendy in the past few months,
that it seems as though they are everywhere! But, poorer areas--that is.
This healthy snack is filled with lots of vitamins and is on the lower
calorie side. Sadly, poorer areas do not get a chance to even buy it due
to it being more pricy, and the simpler fact that there aren't too many
in low-income -areas. It is unfortunate that these people don't even
get a chance. They are being singled out, if you ask me, and should not
be limited to having a healthy lifestyle like other people.
Living
a healthy lifestyle can be both pricy for the one, and on the other
hand, difficult to continue for a long period of time. People nowadays,
are always worried that their diet may not have an abundance of fruits
and vegetables so they strive to continue a healthy lifestyle. But what
happens when you are on the poorer end? Does that mean that you should
eat junk food all day and potentially be fat? It is extremely
unfortunate to know that poorer people are more prone to being fat in
comparison to your typical upper-middle class person. People that are
poorer should have the same opportunity for fresh food if not more of an
opportunity than your average stable upper-middle class Joe. There
should be a lot more well-known programs are more aid assistance from
the government because the majority of them are already struggling to
make ends meet.
Researching
and learning about food and its impact it has on society has definitely
opened up my mind and made me have a very different perspective one
food. I know that now, while I'm eating, I will think about what food
really means in our daily lives as well as what it means to society.
While researching, I read a lot of different ways one could save at the
grocery store in addition to not spending as much money if you are on a
budget crunch. By making this blog, if I could help one person save
that is struggling with money, it would mean a lot to me. Although the
tips and tricks I will mention might be somewhat logical, I feel the
need to still mention them. Some tips to help save at the grocery store
are: buy eggs in bulk, drink water, make a list beforehand and stick to
that list when you're at the grocery store, cut out coupons from the
daily newspaper, make sure you sign up for the rewards card at your
local grocery store--it can save you money and after a certain amount of
points, they give you money in return!
Works Cited
"Food."
Dictionary.com. Copyright © 2013 Dictionary.com, LLC., n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2013.
