American Food Culture

To understand this food centered culture, one must take into consideration how the overconsumption of food may also be due to the different social interactions that goes on between the people while eating. Food culture is different within each culture, there are various different qualities and quantities of food that is consumed by people in every part of the world. For example, the French way of eating revolves around socializing, while to some Americans, its more about the food itself that we shove down our throats. (Kingsolver). Americans may often criticize foreign countries for their bizarre meals and odd delicacies. However, one major difference between their food and American’s food is that some countries do not practice unnecessary …show more content…
According to Modern Sedentary Activities Promote Overconsumption of Food in our Current Obesogenic Environment, it states how modern sedentary activities are promoting the overconsumption of food and also leads to a lack of exercise (Chaput). The lack of exercise along with the overconsumption of food are leading factors to why the American population suffers immensely from cardiovascular diseases. Specifically, the author focuses on various modern sedentary activities that most Americans are known to partake in. One of them being television viewing which according to the author, “Epidemiological studies have consistently reported that television viewing is associated with increased meal frequency and food intake.” The study concluded with results demonstrating how, “… eating two such meals weekly in front of the television would cause an annual weight gain of 3.6 kg if we assume no compensatory changes.” As well as showing that, “… television viewing acts as a ‘distractor’ at meal times and induces an increase in caloric intake.” (Chaput). It is important for Americans to realize that watching something as innocent as a favorite televised marathon, can impact the amount of food one would consume. However, for those few Americans who do not watch much television, there is another situation that the author encompasses, that being short sleeping. The author states that, “… chronic lack of sleep represents a stress factor stimulating appetite, promoting weight gain and ... subsequently increased [the] risk of type 2 diabetes.” While in contrast, a good night’s rest will have beneficial effects (Chaput). However, the lack of sleep does not only affect adults, it also affects small children. According to the author, “… shorter sleep duration