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This is tangential, but does anyone know of a field of study that specifically investigates traditional dietary frameworks in different parts of the world? Not
by pradocchia 16y ago
This is tangential, but does anyone know of a field of study that specifically investigates traditional dietary frameworks in different parts of the world? Not what people actually eat per se, but what local tradition advises? The comparative philosophy of food, the anthropology of normative diets?
In China, for example, some foods are considered "heating", while others "cooling". Based on the time of year and your own condition, you may be advised to eat this set of foods, and avoid that.
If one could compile a set of such recommendations, cross reference them, and control for variations in climate, soil and whatnot, perhaps some interesting patterns might emerge.
- zbanks 16y agoDid someone call for a nutritional anthropologist? www.nutritionalanthro.org/
- sliverstorm 16y ago> In China, for example, some foods are considered "heating", while others "cooling". Based on the time of year and your own condition, you may be advised to eat this set of foods, and avoid that. gah... I dated a chinese girl, and she would discuss that with me when she got sick. It feels like folk medicine, the decision of what makes something 'hot' or 'cold' and so on seemed so arbitrary.
- meric 16y agoHmm I don't know if its arbitary, I can tell if a food is 'hot' or 'cold' just by eating it, even if I've never seen it before. For me, only eating 'hot' foods means I get more ulcers, so I am always watching out.
- riffraff 16y agoif the hot/cold idea is deeply rooted in you, it makes sense that you are able to tell what is what, but that does not mean it's not arbitrary, just that you have assimilated the method on a deeper level. Consider italians, and pasta. Basically everybody knows "instinctively" if a sauce makes sense with short or long pasta, but in the end it's still completely arbitrary :)
- kranner 16y agoNot sure you have a basis for declaring it arbitrary yet, not even in the absence of evidence that it isn't.
- kranner 16y agoTo me, the hotness/coldness of a food is not always obvious. Would you have guessed that apples are 'hot'?
- kranner 16y agoIn China, for example, some foods are considered "heating", while others "cooling". That's very interesting. That concept also exists in Indian, Pakistani and (I believe) Persian culture.
- c1sc0 16y agoMy wife is Chinese & one thing I noticed is that I have never felt better than when I stayed for extended periods in China. They take that hot/cold stuff seriously & based on anecdotal evidence I think I'm living a healthier lifestyle & eating better when I'm in China. Also, Chinese traditional medicine healed an ailment for me that stumped the best (european) specialists, even though I had absolutely no faith in that nasty chinese medecine. One of the things that may make a difference is that more traditional cultures take food more seriously. We tend to think about food as either a trendy thing to do, like eating out, or just 'filling up on calories', like junk food. A healthy middle ground where people actually take the time to cook & enjoy fresh food seems to be lost.
- huhtenberg 16y ago> some foods are considered "heating" Tangential anecdote - pregnant women apparently should not eat lamb, because it is "heating food" and will cause the growth of myomas (uterus tumors). No scientific confirmation what-so-ever. Can't eat it just because it's "heating" and causes "things to grow". Try countering this when talking to a pregnant wife choke-full of interesting mind-altering hormones :)