Your “Diet” is a Privilege

Your organic, free range, GMO free, only green juice diet is a privilege. It is a privilege to get to make food and nutrition choices. It is a privilege to walk through a grocery store and make a decision based on ingredients and not price. 

It’s important to talk about how we address nutrition and health when it comes to affordability and not just what is popular in the media right now. I can preach fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables all I want, but when someone’s choices are convenience store options or a food bank, these suggestions ring hollow and insensitive. 

Women who are part of the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) are allotted $8-11 per month for fresh fruits and vegetables. In 2018, the poverty line was stated to be $25,100 for a family of 4; that year 33% of WIC participants made 0-50% of the poverty line. This means they made $0-12,550 a year. For help? They get $8-11 for vegetables and 1-2 pounds of whole grain bread per month. The other catch? Only certain brands are allowed. It’s not that these programs aren’t doing what they can; it’s just that, they are doing ALL that they can.  Instead of making changes, we make assumptions of people and programs instead of providing the tools and resources necessary. 

According to Forbes, 30 million people (23% of the workforce) applied for unemployment during the COVID-19 layoffs. What we aren’t talking about is that many people actually made more money while receiving unemployment than they do working their normal jobs. 

We judge when someone gets McDonalds for dinner. What we don’t recognize is how much easier it is to purchase $6 Big Mac Combo meal that provides 1090 calories when compared to grocery shopping, preparing, and storing food when someone is limited on time, money, and the necessary appliances. 

Every year the government talks about decreasing funding to nutrition assistance programs such as WIC or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as “food stamps”. When this comes up, the people who need this assistance are dehumanized; so, let’s humanize them. These are your single mother’s working minimum wage jobs, these are Veterans, these are the elderly who care for their spouses with disabilities, and these are 20 year old kids with student loan debt whose monthly payment may take priority over food. 

When we say that organic, pesticide, hormone, and antibiotic free are the only healthy options, we are making nutrition and health unattainable and unrealistic. When companies charge more for a label such as “gluten free” because a privileged, largely white community has made these choices the gold standard, it is hurting more than helping. 

I am not saying that everyone should eat fast food. I am not saying that you shouldn’t eat antibiotic free meat. Your personal food choices are just that, your choices. I just think that we should stop acting like paying more for organic apples is somehow better, or even okay. 

In reality, canned vegetables and fruit are still a healthy option. Choosing whole grain bread is still healthy even if it is not GMO free. Gluten free breads, bagels, and pastries are almost always less healthy than their gluten-filled counterparts. Labels don’t make the food great, people do. 

As dietitians, we always say we need to “meet people where they are” when we talk about providing education. But are we really doing that, or are we just avoiding the hard topics? I think we can do better. 

Citations:

  1. WIC Food Packages – Maximum Monthly Allowances. (n.d.). Retrieved June 29, 2020, from https://www.fns.usda.gov/wic/wic-food-packages-maximum-monthly-allowances
  2. 2018 Poverty Guidelines. (2019, January 11). Retrieved June 29, 2020, from https://aspe.hhs.gov/2018-poverty-guidelines
  3. WIC Participant and Program Characteristics 2018 – Charts. (n.d.). Retrieved June 29, 2020, from https://www.fns.usda.gov/wic/participant-and-program-characteristics-2018-charts
  4. Guina, R. (2020, May 05). Coronavirus Layoffs – Job Losses And Furloughs Are Even Impacting ‘Safe’ Jobs. Retrieved June 29, 2020, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/ryanguina/2020/05/05/coronavirus-layoffs-are-impacting-safe-jobs/
  5. Robinson, S. (2020, June 04). Doubling Down on Diversity: Food & Nutrition: From the Magazine. Retrieved June 29, 2020, from https://foodandnutrition.org/from-the-magazine/doubling-down-on-diversity-the-journey-to-a-more-diverse-field/

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