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Jacob Russell is a master’s of communications student at the University of Maine. This column reflects his views and expertise and does not speak on behalf of the university. He is a member of the Maine chapter of the national Scholars Strategy Network, which brings together scholars across the country to address public challenges and their policy implications. Members’ columns appear in the BDN every other week.
Improving your diet is complicated by all that influences what you eat. You can want to eat a healthy snack but choose an unhealthy one after being influenced by someone close to you, an advertisement, or simply how hard it can be to know about and acquire healthy food. This month, National Nutrition Month, is the right time to learn about these dietary influences and take action to better your nutrition and that of others.
Unhealthy diets contribute to obesity and chronic disease, both of which are on the rise in the United States, with the national obesity rate increasing from 30.5 percent (1999) to 41.9 percent (2017). Maine had the highest obesity rate in New England as of 2019, due in part to its rurality making it difficult to get healthy food. Feeding America states that 1 in 10 people and 1 in 7 children in Maine face hunger. Food insecurity is the first issue to look at when addressing community nutrition.
Another issue that can help us understand more of how those unhealthy statistics became a reality is negative dietary influences — part of my research interests in communication, media and nutrition. For example, media has been shown to have an impact on eating disorders in children and adolescents, and watching television advertisements has increased adults’ snack food consumption in experiments. These findings have convinced some researchers to advocate for the regulation of food advertising.
Positive dietary influences, such as nutrition education and assistance, can also be effective. Strong nutrition education can lead to healthier food choices, and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is linked with improved health outcomes and lower health care costs. These positive dietary influences should be amplified to assist our pursuit of a healthy diet for all.
With this research in mind, we should support policies such as Maine’s free school lunches and the proposed “food as medicine” concept. Those in need should utilize resources, including the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program through the University of Maine and the Good Shepherd Food Bank’s food map. These policies and resources help us learn about, acquire and choose to eat healthy food, and thus are vital for our health and society.
As we saw in the advocacy for Maine’s free school lunches, the path to success for these policies and resources requires acknowledgment of their value and cooperation among those who may disagree elsewhere. We all deserve the opportunity to eat healthy food, so we should pursue a healthy diet for ourselves and others, particularly during National Nutrition Month.