The Preference and Practice of Consuming Comfort Foods - Essay Example

Comfort Foods Introduction Comfort foods are foods that may possess a nostalgic or maudlin appeal to the consumer. The nostalgic effect evoked by these foods may be at a personal or societal level. Most comfort foods are sweet, tasty, easy to eat, and they generally have a soft consistency. Across the world, different people may relate to the experience of deeply wishing for particular cuisines or snacks in a new or changing environment. Comfort foods are associated with different experiences, feelings, and occasions in the lives of the consumers, and the foods tend to evoke similar emotional reactions every time they are consumed. Different scholars concur to this behavior of people turning to comfort foods, and advance that most of these foods contain high levels of sugars and fats, thus offering temporary psychological enhancement. Comfort foods differ from one individual to the other in relation to preferences. For instance, they may be spicy, sugary, or aromatic. These foods are comparable in their functions as nostalgic, mood setting and familiar favorites. Since comfort foods are defined by culture, individual preferences, and other intrinsic factors, this essay examines the various aspects that influence the preference and practice of consuming comfort foods. The commonality of comfort foods The most common aspect of comfort foods is that they all have a psychological effect on the consumer, evoking feelings of contentment, wellbeing, and comfort (Locher, Yoels and Mauner 273). Another uniting factor is that comfort foods are familiar dishes, which remind people of particular incidences or experiences, for instance the culinary skills of a mother, grandmother, spouse, or friend, or a favorite restaurant. In view of this, comfort foods are eaten to attain a degree of enhanced emotional status. Four major categories of comfort foods exist, depending on the function they play on the person consuming them or the significance placed on them by a given culture. The categories include nostalgic cooking, fast foods, indulgence or pleasure foods, and physical comfort foods (Locher, Yoels and Mauner 273). The majority of comfort foods are consumed when an individual needs comfort in changing times, for instance after undertaking strenuous work, on a cold drizzly afternoon, or when faced by difficulties such as a heartbreak, or the demise of a loved one. Due to the significance people place on comfort foods, these foods have the ability to lessen pressure, restore mental calm, and bring out a sense of security and with wellbeing. The most common comfort dishes are consumed warm. They may include dishes or desserts associated with places or a person an individual loves (Fountain Link). In America, various groups considered ethnic are rich in culture; they include African Americans, the Indians, and the Latinos. Comfort foods are of significance to them, as they are a celebration of a rich a culture symbolizing the struggles their ancestors went through. Most of their comfort foods are ethnic foods that signify family unity. Usually, majority of comfort foods comprise of American holiday-preferred dishes such as mashed potatoes, meatloaf, fried chicken, and macaroni with cheese, apple pie, spaghetti, potatoes chips, ice cream, green beans casserole, and chicken soup. These foods tend to evoke psychological and emotional feelings that remind people of happy, special, and treasured memories (Fountain Link). My favorite comfort foods My favorite comfort food is macaroni and cheese. This dish is my comfort food because it reminds of my mother back in America. Currently I am in Australia studying. The other cooking that I have came to consider my comfort food is special friend chicken. This special chicken comforts me when I am in grief. This is because, when one of my friends had an accident and broke her leg, her mother made this chicken for us when we went to cheer her up. The chicken was prepared using basil and oregano, garam masala, Maida and oats among other ingredients. This chicken makes me believe that every thing is going to be well. I have heard some of my friends say spaghetti and mashed potatoes, ice cream, and green beans casserole constitute some of their comfort foods. Gender and comfort foods Research indicates that food preference is not only influenced by taste, but also by gender (Moore, Arbor and Zhang 17). A study conducted by Wansink on the correlation between gender and preferred comfort foods reports that there are clear differences between male and female preferences of comfort foods (Collinge 176). Accordingly, the male gender prefers hot dishes to snacks. The female gender, on the other hand, prefers snacks. Other food types preferred by females include cookies, chocolates, and ice cream, whereas the male gender identifies pizza, soups, and ice cream as the preferred foods. The feelings attached to these foods also portray a divergent trend in aspects like preparation and consumption of the comfort foods (Collinge 176). Although the female gender also indicated preference in consuming hot meals, the emotional sentiments carried by the comfort food consumption differed considerably. Women observed that the hot meal men preferred reminded them of the efforts their mothers and grandmothers had to put in preparing them. In their view, there was no comfort in those foods as they symbolized the preparation and cleaning they had to undertake, hence the reason for preferring take-away provisions such as ice cream and chocolates (Kochavi). Contrary to popular opinion, most people seek comfort foods more when they are in a happy mood than when in a sad mood (Reutter). Interestingly, the mood an individual in influences the nutritional value of the comfort dish consumed. This means that individuals in jovial moods usually tend to consume healthier foods compared to those in sad moods who may long for unhealthy foods such as French fries and cookies. Gender preference in foods stems from childhood, and since the female gender is not accustomed to being cooked for, young girls perceive females as the principal dish planners and servers. As such, females may find more psychological comfort in take-away dishes than males (Reutter). The psychology of comfort foods Nostalgic foods Several factors influence the desire to engage in the act of eating. Americans do not consume turkey during thanksgiving by chance. Apart from the nutritional knowledge of the food to be consumed, additional factor influence the food choice and what constitutes a comfort food in a given culture. Factors influencing a personal or cultural comfort food choice include the social eating trends, family unit, ethnicity, food fads, meal preparation, and psychological aspects such as stress, mood, and marketing efforts (Edlin and Golanty 94). The psychological influences of what constitutes comfort foods are guided by both intrinsic and extrinsic factors. The consumption of nostalgic foods is thought to protract a person’s sense of family, culture, as well as self-identity. Psychological experts suggest that when people are physically disengaged from elements that define who they are, they may get their spirits or sense of belonging broken. Under these circumstances, the consumption of foodstuffs with a sentimental attachment to their past may restore their spirits through maintenance of the connection of the self in unknown settings. This is particularly true in situations requiring individuals to uphold ethnic uniqueness (Locher, Yoels and Mauner 280). In view of this, advertisers exploit this attribute by selling particular foods based on mythical memories. Nostalgic foods are, in most cases, connected to recollections of being provided for by a loved one. For instance, when a loved one is sick across many cultures, either their close relatives or friends prepare them food, for example a cup of tea or chicken soup. The act of preparing these meals for loved ones is a memorable experience. The gesture is often passed on from generation to generation, and it enables people to demonstrate their feelings of love and care for loved ones. Such foods may evoke similar feelings in the life of the individual (Collinge 182). Comfort foods are often associated with sharing during special occasions. For instance, pizza is shared in the American culture when a popular track team wins, a coconut is shared during honeymoon by the newly weds. In this case, coconut acts as comfort food when things are not going well in marriage. They eat it when they want to reminisce how happy they were on their honeymoon. Another concept associated with comfort foods under the category of nostalgic food is the manner in which the food is prepared. The element of food preparation evokes sentiments as it reminds people of memorable occasions in which they were preparing food with their loved ones. While preparing the particular foods, individuals reconstruct the mindset of familiarity experienced in previous occasions. The food preparation element in comfort foods helps to promote bonding between close friends and relatives. It is worth noting that the bonding act between close friends, in most cases, happens in the kitchen set up, and cooking activities have been associated with stress relief (Curtin and Heldke 226). Indulgence comfort foods Some comfort foods generate comfort to their consumers, promoting their indulgence in such consumption. In most cases, individuals disregard the caloric content of the foods or the expense incurred in relation to such indulgence. Some individual indulge in unhealthy foods just because by consuming them, they feel good about themselves. Chocolate is an example of an indulgent comfort food popular across both genders. Majority of the people who consume indulgence foods associate them with unique event in their lives, for instance Valentines Day, which makes them experience feelings of satisfaction and comfort (Snyder, Baucom and Gordon 116). The consumption of indulgence foods results in feelings of guilt. This is particularly because majority of these foods do not offer a total cure for the emotional distress experienced by the consumer. Although people eat comfort foods to satisfy their emotional needs, they experience anxiety and guilt after realizing that such foods did more harm than good to their health (Snyder, Baucom and Gordon 116). The other psychological element behind the consumption of comfort foods is the reward aspect. A study by Locher, Yoels and Mauner (286) reports on the element of reward associated with indulgence foods. The study uses the case of two students who described how their mothers taught them fundamental concepts in mathematics, like addition and subtraction, using a brand name M & Ms, and later rewarded them on getting the correct answer. In view of this, comfort food consumption may be associated with good behavior, reward and success (Locher, Yoels and Mauner 286). The science of comfort foods The body is an interconnected system of individual processes. The mind connects emotions, thoughts, and stimuli, and this may explain the science behind the consumption of comfort food. The mind is at its optimal performance when an individual is feeling safe (LeMoult). Reward, satisfaction, and the feeling of security activate different parts of the brain. The resultant reaction varies in each individual, hence the dissimilarity in the type of foods considered as comfort foods. Majority of the foods considered as comfort foods are linked to an experience in the past, and hence, they are coded in the brain to evoke specific emotions. As such, a competitive person is more likely to take pleasure in comfort foods that have been coded as reward in his brain, whereas a lonely person may not find comfort in foods linked to the feeling of togetherness. Following this school of thought, an individual with an abusive past may not find security in foods considered as safety comfort foods (LeMoult). Science and psychology of comfort foods Many of the psychological aspects of comfort foods are linked to the scientific aspect of comfort foods. For instance, depression may have a psychological effect on the food an individual consumes. This means that the chemical composition of the food an individual eats may affect the physical body condition as well as the frame of mind (Gómez-Pinilla 568). In addition, stress puts more demand on the body to ingest more calories, leading to more consumption of comfort foods high in calories in response to the negative emotions. Conclusion The type of foods considered as comfort foods varies across cultures and individual preference. Most of the comfort foods are consumed under circumstances of change to evoke memories of the past. In most cases, the memories influence the psychological and emotional state of the individual, and may be significant in shaping people’s eating behaviors. However, the psychology behind comfort foods is a complex one, since these foods provide therapy to the human mind while destroying the body. For instance, high caloric foods may provide remedy for negative emotions, but on the other hand, predispose the consumer to health risks including obesity, overweight, and cardiovascular diseases. The dissimilarity in choice of comfort foods among individuals can be based on the experience, capacity to regulate emotions, and expressiveness. Women are more prone to negative comfort foods since their likelihood of encountering unpleasant experiences is higher than that of men. In addition, women focus more on negative emotions compared to men who detach themselves from such emotions, and thus have the likelihood of consuming more comfort foods to boost their positive outlook. Comfort foods play a significant role many societies, as well as in the lives of individuals. The psychological effect they play can be used in the management of diseases and in improving life through emotional balance. Works Cited Collinge, William. Partners in Healing: Simple Ways to Offer Support, Comfort, and Care to a loved one facing illness. Boston: Trumpeter Books, 2008. Print. Curtin, Deane W. and Lisa Maree Heldke. Cooking, eating, thinking: transformative philosophies of food. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1992. Print. Edlin, Gordon and Eric Golanty. Health and Wellness. 10th ed. Sudbury, Mass.: Jones and Bartlett Publishers, 2010. Print. Fountain Link. “Common Comfort Foods.” Web 20 September. 2010. Gómez-Pinilla, Fernando. "Brain foods: the effects of nutrients on brain function." Nature Reviews Neuroscience 9 (2008): 568-578. Print. Kochavi, Adi. "Study: Gender Affects Comfort Food Choice." The Cornell Daily Sun 8 March 2008. [Online] LeMoult, Craig. “Feeling safe and secure? CUMC scientists find its all in the caudoputamen.” Web. 20 April 2005. Locher, Julie L, et al. "Comfort Foods: An Exploratory Journey into the Social and Emotional Significance of Food." Food & Foodways: History & Culture of Human Nourishment 13.4 (2005): 273-297. Print. Moore, David J., Ann Arbor and Lingling Zhang. "Gender Differences in Food Preferences: The Role of Emotional Intensity, Self-Regulation, and Appetitive Craving." Journal of Academy Of Business and Economics 10.5 (2010): 15-27. Print. Reutter, Mark. “Gender preferences in comfort foods stem from childhood.” Web. 2 July 2003. Snyder, Douglas K., Donald H. Baucom and Coop Kristina Gordon. Getting past the affair: a program to help you cope, heal, and move on together or apart. New York: Guilford Press, 2007. Print. Read More