Explore How Your Family Played a Role in Your Relationship With Food

Things like the content of the food that goes on our plates, the amount we eat, the number of times we eat and snack over the course of our day, and many other food rituals that we bring into adulthood originated with our families growing up.

In fact, one could say that your established eating habits might be nearly as genetic as the actual composition of your blood. How so?

Who is the first person who taught us about food and eating? Our mother. Our female relatives, generally. (Though, now in the modern age, fathers and other male caregivers have begun to participate in the nurturing practice of feeding kids.)

If you’re an adult embarking on a healthy eating plan, this applies to your mother because she’s the one who fed and taught you about food.

Historically, your mother gifted you the following:

• Family recipes; “her” recipes

• Methods for presenting and serving food

• Expectations around portions and what was “enough” or not enough

• When, how much and how often to indulge in snacking, sweets, and specialty foods

• What types of food were considered standard fare versus what was considered more adventurous or maybe even outside the realm of possibility (some people refuse to eat sushi, Indian food, etc.)

All of these food and eating perceptions and expectations were passed down from generations of mothers who came before. Everything from what foods are eaten on holidays, to what special rituals families indulge with particular types of foods, to the comfort food that you search out in times of family stress... all of this is passed down from mother to child.

Over time, modifications are made along the way. Attitudes about food and eating change as people become more educated and as certain types and varieties of nutritious food become more accessible.

(Example: families of prior generations didn’t snack on chips and salsa because it wasn’t available or widely known about.)

Generally, people are inclined to follow the nutritional advice and eating recommendations of the day. This is good news, because it means that eating habits do evolve, even if it doesn’t seem like it.

In truth, your radical new way of eating healthy may be the catalyst that breaks the cycle.

You could be that revolutionary cook who changes the trajectory of how future family generations regard food; and the how, when and why of eating meals.

But even so, food psychology is very much ingrained in us from family and how we were raised. Our perception of what is a good meal, how much is a good meal, how quickly and neatly or sloppily we eat, how likely we are to snack throughout the day, what food is healthy and so forth, all comes from our family of origin.

If there are many overweight people in your family, or if say the females in your family tend to be on the heavier side, you might shrug it off and say well there’s nothing much I can do about these genetics that have been handed down to me.

But there is definitely some truth to the fact that we can relearn how to feed our body so that we can really deliver optimum nutrition without excess. And we can do it without repeating those family food rituals and eating habits that put us into the overweight category in the first place.

Healthy Weight Loss Starts with a Mind Shift

Unhealthy habits are often repeated, even when it’s hard to recognize them. That’s why it’s important to be mindful of these patterns. Once you have identified the pattern, you can take the necessary steps to break the cycle.

Why you keep eating the same foods

Some people find it difficult to change their eating habits because they’re still tempted by unhealthy foods. However, by modifying what you eat and how you eat, you can change your routine and ultimately your weight.

The first step is understanding why you keep doing what you are doing. Are you hanging around with a crowd of junk-food eaters? Do you stop for lunch at places where mostly unhealthy options are offered? Do you buy junk food for the kids to eat after school?

in unhealthy eating patterns.

If junk-food junkies are sabotaging your healthy eating agenda, start running with a new, healthier crew.

If Mickey D’s isn’t offering what you need to eat right, choose a new lunch-break locale… or, start packing a healthy, homemade meal.

If your kids’ chips and treats tempt you on the daily, hide them from yourself or tell your kids they’ll be buying junk food on their own time, with their own money from now on.

What else can you do differently?

unhealthy foods, which can then lead to weight gain.

To break out of this pattern, make a change in your mindset. It may be difficult, but awareness is the first step.

To use the same example, Tuesday’s meal becomes “Homemade mac with real cheese, broccoli and whole-grain pasta” night instead.

Start thinking to yourself, “How can I make this healthy?”

Once you get into that habit, you can take it another step:

“How can I make this easy?”

The second step is to actively replace the habits and routines that keep you stuck

Every day, people are faced with the dilemma of what to eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner. You may find yourself preparing the same, unhealthy foods again and again. (“But Tuesday is Hot Dogs and Boxed Mac ‘n Cheese night”!)

When this happens, it can cause you to end up eating more of the same

(Answer: Shop for the broccoli, real cheese and other healthy ingredients to stock your fridge ahead of time. Cook the healthy whole-grain mac in advance, and store it to use over the course of this week.)

Before you know it, your mindset will be all about health – and you won’t even be trying… it will just happen.