What makes us reach for a particular food when hunger strikes? Is it the color, the texture, or a memory of how it made us feel last time? Is it influenced by societal norms or the eating patterns we developed as kids? The answer is all of the above.
But there’s a key difference between now and our primal past. Today, our choices happen in supermarkets, not in the jungle. We’re no longer scanning shrubs, deciding whether to gather berries or hunt a gazelle and figuring out how to haul it back to camp. Instead, we’re standing in front of refrigerators, reading labels that promise 15 grams of protein because we’ve been conditioned to believe protein equals good health.
Imagine if that label came directly from a higher power – if the package literally said, “I am God, and this is what you should eat at 1 p.m.” It would be easy to trust. But in reality, these labels are crafted by marketers, not divine wisdom. They play on our instincts and societal conditioning, convincing us that their product is exactly what we need.
In the modern world, our food choices are shaped by a complex blend of biology, culture, memory, and marketing. Understanding this helps us take a step back and question whether we’re really nourishing ourselves or just following the next shiny label.