Sensation of Food
Food can influence us in ways that you may not even know. On your way home from work or school do you ever crave that snack or meal? I know I have. What I did not know was that the sensation of wanting food is more than just feeding your stomach. Food impacts our health, social interactions, emotions, and psychological well-being. This is the food well-being paradigm. It can impact all areas of our life. Greater social awareness and increased programs can help, but education is the key to alerting the public to the detrimental effects of food scarcity.
It is a reality that your mood will change if you do not have enough to eat or if you cannot join your friends for dinner. Many people do not recognize the impact that food has on our lives. The authors of “Hunger and Food Well-Being: Advancing Research and Practice”, have researched the paradigm of food well-being. They propose research to guide organizations and government officials toward generating food well-being for all. They stated that there is “A positive psychological, physical, emotional, and social relationship with food (2019).” In other words, there is a relationship between your well-being and food. A relationship with food? No, you are not taking it on a date or walking your pet apple. Eating food will boost your body’s emotions besides satisfying your appetite. You become more positive and productive.
Being hungry makes you “hangry”. Hangry is being hungry and angry. This is just one of the symptoms of an empty stomach. Physically, your immune system can decline, and become sick. Socially, family traditions and cultural customs may not be passed onto the younger generation. The author’s state, “Hunger, even for a short period due to unexpected expenses or an income shortfall, poses an acute and immediate hardship and can have a devastating impact on a person’s, as well as a family’s, well-being (2019).” In other words, even if the food scarcity is for a short time, there can still be a negative result from the inability to get food. Depression, anxiety, and even shame can result because of a lack of food. It would be difficult to accept that someone in my family is diagnosed with a disease because they suffered from malnutrition. In this context of the food well-being paradigm, food scarcity, even for a short time, can greatly impact all facets of an individual’s life.
Educating people on the effects of food-scarcity will help the overall quality of life of those who suffer from food insecurity. Just as society has been taught to be made aware of terrorism, or that there should be gender equality, society should be made aware of the food well-being paradigm. We receive information to make us aware of these issues through the news, social media, shows, etc. Food scarcity needs to be broadcasted around the world through educational outlets.
Governments as well as society should have an increased role to ensure all people have enough food. Educating policy makers and those in social work can influence the shift to resolve the problems that cause food scarcity. “Although nonprofits and other entities work to make food accessible, they must also collaborate with policy makers to provide more stable and permanent solutions for those living with food poverty (2019).” In other words, policy makers and non-profit organizations must work together to find solutions to all the barriers that cause food poverty. In the context of creating permanent solutions, policy makers and organizations need to work together to create solutions to the issues that cause food poverty instead of only supplying food.
Supplying food is only one piece of this humanitarian crisis. Food poverty is an outcome of job loss, inability to get to the store, lack of food preparation equipment, etc. People from all aspects of food production, transportation, and preparation, need to be made aware of the problems that people face to eat a healthy meal. Educating governmental officials and those in society will help to solve food scarcity.
Our minds, physical health, emotions, and social interactions are all affected by our food security. It is a critical part of our lives that our society cannot overlook. Educating the people as well as policy makers and organizations is a key to solving this crisis. People can live fuller lives when their stomach is satisfied.
Peracchio, L. A., & Bublitz, M. G. (n.d.). Hunger and Food Well-Being: Advancing Research and Practice. . Shibboleth Authentication Request. https://web-b-ebscohost-com.gate.lib.buffalo.edu/ehost/detail/detail?vid=0&sid=ac2175c8-d1c1-42a4-8a7c-05d0019fa704%40pdc-v-sessmgr03&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#AN=135518802&db=bah.
