Origins of the modern diet
By Joseph Valenti, Biology, 2023
The modern Western diet is known for its horrible effects on the American population, such as high obesity rates and widespread metabolic diseases. It is also linked to many other illnesses such as increased risk of cancer, heart disease, and type 2 diabetes. While overconsumption can play into the above issues, the problem with the Western diet is thought to lie on a deeper level. With the expanding research in the field of microbiology, correlations between the Western diet and the human microbiome are emerging. However, these correlations need much more research before anything conclusive can be gathered and applied to dieting. Researchers may be exploring how to abandon the modern Western diet, but how did it come to be?
Experts characterize this diet as a high consumption of red meat, pre-packaged and processed foods, and fast food. The extended shelf life of these foods results from exposure to canning, freezing, modified atmosphere packaging, pasteurization, and the addition of preservatives. This makes the food easily accessible and efficient, especially for families who do not have the time to cook full meals.
The early 1900s saw the entrance of processed foods into grocery stores. With a growing urban population, more food was necessary, which led to strategic mass production that revolutionized the market. With mass production, added preservatives were necessary to increase shelf life. Products also introduced trans fats into the food market during this time period. During the First World War, industries urged the American population to buy perishable foods such as eggs and dairy products. This pushed the average American to desire fresh, perishable foods, which became more accessible with the invention and marketing of the gas stove and electric refrigerator. These new kitchen technologies, and the desire for fresh food, also allowed for the introduction of new food processing methods: canning and freezing meals. The Great Depression saw a reduction in meat consumption and a turn toward cheap and available foods, like canned vegetables and beans.
World War II caused a heavy increase in the dose of processed foods cycling throughout America. In order to ration food among the army, the food industry produced many convenience foods, including dehydrated juice, Spam, instant coffee, and cake mix. After the war, the market for feeding soldiers shrank, and the companies that manufactured these processed foods turned to the American housewife as their new market. This marketing was not necessarily successful at first, but, through rebranding, the new products took hold by promoting an aspirational lifestyle under the name “packaged food cuisine.”
Around this time, post-Dust Bowl agriculture saw the introduction of fertilizers and irrigation systems that increased crop yield but decreased the nutrition provided by each crop. Subsidies granted to the corn and soy industries allowed for greater production of food made with high-fructose corn syrup.
The 1950s brought television, highways, and the microwave. After a few decades of establishing a foothold in the American market, the prepackaged and processed foods commonly associated with the Western diet found their niche. The new technologies amplified the convenience of these foods, allowing for their widespread marketing and travel. Fast food chains also began to expand at a rapid pace around the United States. While the government attempted to monitor the food entering the market with bills, like the 1958 Food Additives Amendment, these efforts proved ineffective and did little to stop any of the unhealthy foods from entering the market.
After the 1950s, movements such as counterculture and healthism attempted to push back against the widespread Western diet, but the diet unfortunately prevailed — and continues to, even 70 years later. Given that the harmful effects of the modern diet have started to become as widespread as the diet itself, hopefully, a push to a new diet will help save the health of America.
