The Factors That Influence Our Food Choices

Factors affecting food and nutrition.
Answer.

Food:

Food is vital for human existence just as air and water.

Food may be defined as anything eaten or drunk, which meets the needs of tissue building, regulation and protection of the body and its energy needs.

Factors That Influence Our Food Choices

Nutrition:

Nutrition is defined as the science of food and its relationship to health.

Nutrition is food at work in the body.

There are many factors which affect food and nutrition are as follow:

Psychological and Environmental Factors Affecting Food Choices

Biological Factors :

In the biological aspect, two main aspects mainly influence food and nutrition

Hunger: Our physiological needs provide the basic determinants of food choice. Humans need energy and nutrients in order to survive.

Sensory aspects: Taste is consistently reported as a major influence on food behaviour.

Superstitions And Cultural Factors :

Food habits are handed over from generation to generation in society, particularly in developing countries.
Though these factors have very little or no scientific basis, people rigidly adhere to them. In many parts of India, pregnant women are not allowed Food, to consume papaya as it is believed that papaya produces a lot of heat in the body, which in turn induces abortion. Pineapple is also not given for the same reason.
Consumption of a lot of garlic is for the secretion of milk.
In parts of Bengal, people believe that the consumption of the tongue of a goat by children will make them more talkative.

Factors Influencing Food Choices: Personal Preferences and Habits

Religious:

Hindus do not eat beef, since the cow is an animal sacred to them.
Among Hindus, some communities do not eat fruits, onions, and garlic.
Many Hindus are vegetarians.
Jains do not eat curds and do not eat after sunset.
It is a custom in most communities in India that women and girls eat only after men and boys finish eating. Thus, the health of the female is affected as they eats poorly with the leftover food.

Economic Factors Influencing Food Choices

Income:

Financial resources determine the type of food we consume.
Depending on the availability, one selects the food.
People in lower-income groups in India consume a combination of cereals and cheaply available green leafy vegetables, roots, and tubers.
People Food of higher-income groups can choose food from all groups irrespective of season.

Geography/Availability:

In the olden days, man would eat what ever was available to satisfy his hunger. The food he got was the type he could cultivate in his locality.
Rice is the main food crop grown in tropical areas.
The nutrition value of natural foods does not vary from country to country. But there is a great variation in the composition of prepared foods such as bread, biscuits, cakes, etc., due to variation in recipes and basic ingredients used in different regions.

Understanding Food Choices: Nutrition, Convenience, and Taste

Psychological Factors:

Level of stress, emotions- appetite increases during happiness but diminishes with stress

Reader Interactions