Social and biocultural determinants of food selection

Health professionals concerned with improving the nutritional status of populations are facing numerous problems ranging from emaciation to overnutrition. This review article addresses the complexity, the relative significance and the interaction of factors leading to the nutritional profile of specific groups and individuals. When availability of food is threatened, the programs designed to reduce the incidence of malnutrition must balance the food supply with energy resources and population needs as well as encourage economic improvement of food distribution systems. For those persons having access to an abundant food supply, social forces and technological factors may affect food patterns, resulting in unbalanced diets associated with chronic diseases. Misinterpretation of reliable scientific findings is a major cause of abnormal nutrition behaviour. Overreaction to health messages may precipitate such conditions as anorexia nervosa or nutrient toxicity. Adverse food reactions, real or imagined, lead to restrictions in food selection. Excessive austerity in food use negates the pleasure of eating, a useful mechanism in food choice ensuring food diversity.