Recently I found myself a bit dis-heartened by a tidbit of trivia. I was out with some friends and eventually the conversation briefly turned to life expectancy rates for men and women. It has commonly been understood that women live longer than men by about six or seven years. Among the things that account for this is the fact that women have traditionally spent more time than men dealing with the "food" in families, be that shopping for food, planning meals, cooking, and so forth. Presumably, women, having taken the health of the members of their families into consideration, were more inclined to serve and eat nutritious things. Coupled with this is that many women were not susceptible to the stresses of the work-place, which aids in the maintenance of their overall health. This, however, seems to be changing.
First of all, women are working more than ever before. "Food" roles within families are more often split between two working parents. Inherently, this is not a bad thing at all. Personally I think it is fantastic that partners are sharing responsibilities! The emergence of modern-day "feminism," in whatever way you choose to define it (because no, there is not one single all-encompassing definition of the word), has meant society challenges gender roles more frequently. Advancing women's rights, and opportunities, hearing their voices, and allowing new opportunities has benefited society in a number of countless ways. Power on!
I titled this post "Feminism vs. Foodism" because to me it seems that these two concepts have somehow become mutually exclusive. I would like to say that I do not think this needs to be the case at all. With the rise of convenience food (because working mothers and fathers need to feed their hungry kids QUICK before someone starves!), the quality and nutrition of food has taken a back-seat to those home-cooked meals Grandma used to make. The hustle and bustle of working lives has meant a dependence on fast food, and an eat-on-the-run mentality. Food is merely fuel. The mothers of past generations, who were responsible for feeding their families, are no more.
I am not saying that mothers and wives should give up their jobs and "go back to the kitchen." In fact I would probably slap the person who was ever brave enough to suggest that to me. What I am saying is that with women being "relieved of their duties" nobody absorbed the duties of dedicating themselves to the immense task of ensuring family members had healthy, hearty, nutritious meals. The priority of food in people's lives was overshadowed by advancing careers, and busy lives.
I continue to believe that in almost every way, the advancement of "feminism" has bettered society in immeasurable ways. But the dwindling of the importance of food in society makes me wonder if anything else has been sacrificed. Luckily, this problem is easily solved - men AND women, mothers AND fathers are able to make good food choices and restore the physical health of our society. Instead of both genders excusing themselves from the responsibility of making these healthy food choices, we can all allow them to become a priority. It will not be easy, but determination, knowledge, and appreciation for a better, healthier way of life is attainable. I believe this.
