Proper Food and a Tight Budget

Abstract

Much attention has been devoted in recent years to issues of food and health in childhood. Being a parent today implies exposure to multiple discourses concerning food and health and how best to bring up one's child. In this study, parents from German and Swedish families with low socio-economic status took part in qualitative studies to examine issues of food in relation to health. The findings suggest that eating habits are influenced by a number of factors. In everyday food consumption, the ideal of proper, healthy food is challenged by time and financial restrains and by individual tastes. A comparison of confectionery versus fruit reveals that the consumption of these eatables is connected to different social contexts and to different sets of values. While there is a tendency to categorize certain groups as less responsible and more problematic, we argue that for the successful development of a health program it is crucial to start by considering structural factors and social inequality and then to take advantage of people's own resources, and work for the active participation of those involved.