Dear nutrition scientists: Most individuals and households are not trying to maximize nutritional status. Instead, they are trying to maximize overall well-being or happiness (what economists call 'utility'). This has implications for nutrition research. 1/18
Brownies are delicious and make me happy. But, brownies are definitely not good for my physical health. So, is the optimal amount of brownie consumption zero? If you ask a nutrition scientist, they will say, ‘don’t eat it. well, a little bit, very occasionally is OK.’ 2/18
Nutrition science is primarily tasked with investigating the roles of foods and nutrients for our physical health and functioning. So, it makes sense why the ‘zero brownies, but just a tiny bit if you must’ paradigm reigns. 3/18
But… most nutrition scientists would agree that there are major social and cultural determinants of eating patterns. 4/18
Furthermore, most nutrition scientists would agree that our physical health is not the only aspect of health. Social health & mental health are facets of overall health. If I repeatedly say no to brownies that my co-worker made and brought in, that may harm my social health. 5/18
If I don’t allow myself to eat any brownies, even if they are my favorite thing to eat – that might harm my mental health over time (I know, I know, but work with me here, it’s an example), or at least tax my executive function over the course of the day. 6/18
If nutrition scientists know these things, why don’t they regularly take social and mental health into account in their work? It could fit in quite nicely. 7/18
The sole focus on physical health in nutritional epidemiology is a problem, because it leads to the proliferation of dietary advice that is difficult to follow. People become hopeless in trying to meet dietary guidelines. 8/18
Neglecting to include social & mental health into everyday nutrition science is also dangerous b/c it severely under-rates the deeply meaningful role of food in daily life. Food is…everything. People’s preferences & beliefs about food are strongly held, and for good reason. 9/18
Only focusing on physical health is also a problem because it ignores a key issue: tradeoffs. I’m not choosing between ‘brownie’ and ‘no brownie,’ I’m choosing between ‘brownie + what I have to give up to eat it’ and ‘no brownie + what I have to give up to not eat it.’ 10/18
You can’t just say to people, ‘don’t eat brownies.’ 11/18
Economists recognize, I’m sure, that the optimal amount of brownie consumption is not zero. 12/18
(The news articles touting the deadliness/lifesavingness of foods is a related issue, but I won’t get into that now… I also won’t get into the fact that nutritional epidemiology is wicked difficult to do, we really only have a broad sense of what to eat to stay healthy). 13/18
From a physical health perspective, a pretty safe prescription is: eat plenty of fruits, veg, whole grains & nuts, eat some fish and dairy, eat a little bit of meat, stay hydrated, rested, and active. Dessert is fine if it doesn’t crowd out good stuff on average. 14/18
For goodness sake, pizza and beer is fine too if it doesn’t crowd out the good stuff on average... 15/18
Michael Pollan’s @michaelpollan advice of “eat food, not too much; mostly plants” is too judgy. Demonizing yummy food is not the answer. Fat-shaming is not the answer. Maximizing utility will involve eating dessert for many, and that is fine. 16/18
Criticizing a person’s dessert consumption is like criticizing a fish for wanting to live in the water. We are biologically driven to love sugar. 17/18
Sincerely, a nutrition scholar who will probably endure comments about my dessert consumption at the upcoming start-of-the-year faculty picnic. 18/18
