33 Farmers Digital Solutions 1-866-668-5565 • www.todaypublicationsfd.net August 2022 Harvest Blast Issue WHAT MAKES YOU CHOOSE THE FOOD YOU EAT? Conclusion Becoming an adult means you have more control over what you eat. But what you eat also determines your current and future health. As you go through your day, think about what influences your food choices. Think about why you value your food. Is it to express your autonomy? Is it to fit in with your friends? Is it because someone online likes a particular food? Once you have figured it out, discuss it with a doctor or trusted adult. Think about ways that you can be yourself, feel like you belong, and eat healthy food. doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.19779076 Discussion Current food environments do not promote healthy food choices. In some mixed and modern environments, nutrientrich foods are more difficult to get. Nutrient-poor foods are easy to access, inexpensive, and highly advertised. In some traditional environments, poverty and food insecurity put adolescent health at risk. Many adolescents do not choose food based on how healthy it is. Instead, food is an important way to express uniqueness. It also provides a sense of belonging, since eating is often a social experience. That is why countries need policies and programs that enable and encourage healthy food. To do this, we need more research to find ways to make nutritious foods more appealing. Adolescents have a lot to say about why they eat what they eat and what will motivate them to make changes. That means we must involve them in the conversations to create food programs. Only then can we help them navigate towards a healthy and socially appealing diet. 2. Factors affecting food choice In all food environments, adolescents have the ability to make food decisions (autonomy). They also have the ability to act on those decisions (agency). But the amount of autonomy and agency adolescents have differs among the environments, and this affects food choice (Fig.1). Traditional food environments Many traditional food environments are in areas experiencing extreme poverty and food insecurity. According to interviews, adolescents in this environment value eating with peers. But they don’t always have the chance to. That is because they often have other tasks taking up their time, including obtaining and preparing food. Mixed food environments Many adolescents in a mixed environment think of nontraditional foods, such as pizza, as a symbol of being modern. Some adults reported that their adolescents skip meals. Instead, they eat unhealthy snacks. But in many countries, adolescents still want to eat at home. That's because they think meals at home are safe and healthy. Modern food environments Adolescents in a modern environment have a lot of autonomy and agency. Many of them purchase a lot of their own food. Advertisements for nutrient-poor foods are also a characteristic of this food environment. Studies show that social media plays a big role in promoting unhealthy foods. Social media also tags vegan and vegetarian diets as healthy. While this is sometimes true, all people need to be careful to eat a balanced, nutritious diet. This is especially true for adolescents. Acknowledgement: This article's adaptation was supported by
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