Food choice refers to how people decide on what to buy and eat.Food choice involves the process of selection, preparation, distribution, and consumption of foods and beverages.
We live in a world of plenty, with more than enough food to choose from. Wander down any grocery store aisle and marvel at the options in every category. But what influences which foods we decide to buy and eat? It”s not as simple as you might think.
We choose foods for many reasons besides hunger. (If eating was as simple as putting gas in a car, we”d have no obesity epidemic in the world today Personal taste, family preferences, cultural influences, emotional reasons, health concerns, societal pressures, convenience, cost, and variety and quantity of the available offerings all come into play when we choose what to eat.
Have you ever thought about “why individuals eat the foods they do?”
Well Food choice behaviours are integral to social and economic expression of identities, preferences, and cultural meanings and ultimately influence nutrient intake and health.
Healthy food choices are crucial for a healthy lifestyle. However, food choices are complex and affected by various factors. Understanding the determinant factors affecting food choices could aid policy-makers in designing better strategies to promote healthy food choices in the general public.
Food choice is very crucial because it determines consumers’ dietary and energy intakes, and in turn their risk of obesity and diet-related diseases. Factors affecting food choices are complex, varied, and inter-connected.
We have several factors that affect food choices and some of them are;
Biological determinants such as hunger, appetite, and taste.
Taste/Palatability
Cost and income. …
Accessibility and availability
Time constraints
Social class/socioeconomic
Social Context
Stress, etc
There are lots and lots of them.
Do you know that as you make your choice of food, you have to also choose breakfast as your most eaten meal?
Well, for good reason. As the name suggests, breakfast breaks the overnight fasting period. It replenishes your supply of glucose to boost your energy levels and alertness, while also providing other essential nutrients required for good health.
Despite the fact that breakfast has a lot of benefit for your health and wellbeing, many people often skip it, for many reasons, not knowing that When you wake up from your overnight sleep, you may not have eaten for up to 10 hours. Breakfast replenishes the stores of energy and nutrients in your body.
A healthy breakfast has many health benefits, so try not to skip it.
Breakfast replenishes the stores of energy and nutrients in your body.
People who do not have breakfast may not meet their recommended daily intakes of fibre, vitamins and minerals.