Low carb diets really go against the grain

In his article “Our National Eating Disorder,” Michael Pollan addresses the recent low-carb diet craze in America.  He describes the obsession with cutting carbohydrates as “carbophobia” and identifies it as something distinctly American that came about in the early 20^th century.  U.S. citizens had been “happily chomping” on bread, noodles, and potatoes for years, but the minute a scientist declared that cutting carbs would burn body fat, the sales on these items when down drastically.

Pollan mentions the French people and how their population consists of “wine-swilling cheese eaters” who seem to be overall healthier than the majority of Americans. He writes that the true paradox here is that of the American health movement—our population is made up of “notably unhealthy people obsessed by the idea of eating healthily.” Pollan describes the American people as willing to try any new diet “as long as it doesn’t actually involve eating less food.” This is why the low-carb diet has become a food fad in the U.S.

These food trends determine what people choose to eat—hence why donut shops, bakeries, and pasta companies are not making as much money as they once did. When I think about how I choose what to eat, I realize that I don’t really think very much at all about what I eat. I eat whenever I’m hungry, and I eat whatever I have available. I typically try to maintain a somewhat balanced diet that includes protein, carbohydrates, calcium, etc., but I usually just grab whatever sounds good.