The Gospel of Food: Everything You Think Know about Food Is Wrong by Dr. Barry Glassner - Essay Example

The Gospel of Food: Everything You Think Know about Food Is Wrong” by Dr. Barry Glassner From the author of America’s bestseller ‘The Culture of Fear’ comes up another sensational and interesting book “The Gospel of Food: Everything You Think Know about Food Is Wrong”. Dr. Barry Glassner is one of the leading professors of sociology in the University of Southern California. After curing the Americans from urban myths in his’ “Culture of Fear”, Glassner throws a volley of corrective researches on the dietary and its style prevalent in Americans. The Gospel of Food is a well-researched text that argues frequent sensational and controversial headlines of magazines and scientific journals about obesity, fast-food and food safety. All these have left the Americans bewildered according to Glassner, about their diet chart. Americans consider eating as their religion and Glassner brings forward a well-researched and wide-ranging commentary on American eating habits and food related beliefs. The Gospel of Food is a welcome antidote to confusing food myths and Glassner in his book examines the veracity of such numerous existing myths by casting his crystal gaze on nutrition researchers and reformers, food writers and corporate food makers. In his book, Glassner provides a persuasive case that Americans unnecessarily become more conscious about healthy eating to an extreme level. Glassner like a magician with a long act and a little great trick opens up into the most controversial topic of nutrition world i.e. obesity. This section of the book dealing with the myths associated with obesity is also the strongest argument put forward by Glassner. He challenges the conventional beliefs for the cause of obesity. He contends that obesity is not always curtailing the years off a man’s life. There is also other reason cited in the book which opens some other reasons behind being overweight. Genetic predisposition, economic hardship and anti smoking campaigns are a complex mix of all these causes too. According to Glassner consuming food and not burning out appropriately is not the only cause for obesity and he makes it clear in his book by presenting a long list of reasons behind obesity and of all the possible causes on his list lower income levels are most intriguing. Glassner views that poor people and some ethnic groups are disproportionately overweight. During the decade of their obesity rate shot up their rates of economic hardship and insecurity also show the same kind of phenomena. As a consequence, more people end up to higher stress levels due to which the body produces less of growth hormones reducing fat deposits and revs up metabolism more as it yields “stress hormones” that provokes craving s for soothing substances like glazed doughnuts and chocolate fudge ice-creams. The book proceeds with more corrections of myth related with food and overeating and Glassner unfolds another reason of obesity. According to Glassner, poverty leads to binge eating. He argues that for some weeks the fridge remains empty and after that when they can afford food, a “food-insecure” may fill the fridge and themselves indulge into high calories. Glassner writes to support his thesis: “Over time their bodies adapt to the alternations by converting more of what they eat to body fat.” With all these thesis and a well-knitted dissected research the common explanations about the cause of obesity like decline of the family meal, fast-food advertising, selling sodas in school and lack of exercise starts to seem less obvious. The next point of contention in the book or rather, it can be said, and the curing of the most important myth related with food culture is the curbing of wrong beliefs regarding the fast-food industry. Glassner in his book “The Gospel of Food” makes convincing defense against fast-food industry. He says that exploration of the vital place for hamburger in American food culture can be the basis for a book by itself. Next in his book he makes some fun of the obnoxious subgroup who gathers into the online communities to dedicate their lives and postings on various blogs in favor of “authentic” ethnic food and gradually race among them to “discover” the true and right place to grab those authentic dishes. These people are termed by Glassner in his book as “food adventurer”. For these food adventurers, Glassner writes, “they would have to revise their views radically. They would have to give up some of the popular dishes in ethnic restaurants, for a start, because in their countries of origin these are special-occasion foods eaten primarily at festivals and holidays, or in homes of the rich. In most places in the world everyday cooking is exactly as the name implies-pedestrian.” The Gospel of Food is a severe challenge to the conventional thinking related with our diet charts. The book is important to cure our mental blockades and inhibitions related with the culinary world. It sets our mind free and makes us ready to jump and grab into many junk food items which we avoid because of fear. In his book Glassner, has also made it clear that ever-ready food or the fast foods are not good for health but as this food appeals to our appetite often, a limited consumption of these foods are not always harmful rather over consciousness with these food may deprive us from getting some of the world’s biggest pleasures. The book is a genuine piece of comprehensive research. The language of the book is lucid and the tone is conversant and journalistic. The book is not only factual and knowledge providing, but its prose style and mockery between the lines make it more interesting and attractive to read. Yet some of the contention in the book seems to bank upon Glassner’s personal hunches. His observations that trade associations with commodities like almond and olive oil exploit people on the ground of promising some extra ordinary health benefits. He mocks the National Watermelon Promotion Board for banking upon the positive news regarding the antioxidant qualities of lycopene which is found in high levels in cooked tomatoes and watermelons. He notes at the “lovely irony” of the fact that a fruit (watermelon) which was associated with low caste African- Americans, all of a sudden achieves the status of “ideal food for white folks” and all because of its marketing materials.Glassner was also shocked by the reality television show “The Restaurant” casting New York chef Rocco DiSpirito seems to be his bizarre observations. Whatever may be the authenticity of observation by Glassner, The Gospel of Food allows us to take a food without a side dish of skepticism and with a dose of clear headed thinking. Bibliography Glassner, Barry. 2008. The Gospel of Food: Why We Should Stop Worrying and Enjoy What We Eat. HarperCollins. Severson, Kim. Fed Up. Sunday Book Review. 27 October, 2009. New York Times. 11 March, 2007. Read More