What Does It Mean to Be "Healthy?"

When I think of what it means to be healthy I picture someone who eats all natural, organic ingredients. Someone who balances fruits, vegetables, and all of the necessary components of foods, exercises daily, has a gym membership, and is not obese or overweight. This is definitely an American view of what it means to be healthy. Many other countries do not count calories; they do not indulge in high-workout experiences like CrossFit. It is just not the same.

The pursuit of maintaining a healthy lifestyle has become a valued activity in today’s society and the definition of “healthy” has evolved as our culture has transformed throughout centuries. As Crawford writes, “to be health conscious today is to come into an understanding that one’s health is in continuous jeopardy.” We are constantly making decisions throughout our daily routines that we believe will affect our overall health. Juice-cleanses, CrossFit, and buying organic are just a few examples of how Western society’s view on health has evolved. In comparison to France, Americans focus on the consequences of eating, while the French focus more on the experience of eating (Rozin, S109). This goes back to Crawford’s point that we consider our health to always be

in jeopardy. Cairns also hits this point when discussing the “organic child.” Mothers feel responsible for protecting their children’s health habits, and ultimately maintain their purity. They do this by feeding their children all-natural, organic ingredients.

Among other stressful situations engraved in American culture, considering oneself “healthy” is just another stress Americans face. Our European counterparts, Sweden, Switzerland, Italy, France, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom all of higher life expectancies than us because their cultures are simple and stress free. While Americans are dieting Europeans are walking to markets to buy their groceries, eating foods with fats and salt, which Americans consider to be bad. This is because we have been taught that fat-free and salt-free diets are good. Americans need to experience a simpler life and a better connection with the food they eat.

“Healthy” certainly does not mean the same to each person living in America, and it certainly does not mean the same to those in other countries. The term healthy goes beyond nutrition and exercise; it is substantially related to one’s culture. Upon studying abroad and witnessing another culture’s way of life I learned valuable lessons. America is fast, stressful, and worried about much more than experiencing a good meal. Americans think that they are healthy is they count calories, eat small meals, and exercise as much as possible. What Americans do not realize is that we are forced into doing these things to stay healthy because our culture emphasizes an unhealthy lifestyle to begin with. With automated garage door openers, cars for every single person in a household, and not many markets in close proximity we are forced into being lazy. Thus, we attempt to workout and eat “right” to make up for our laziness.

It is also extremely unhelpful that the media, doctors, and nutritionists are sending mixed messages to Americans. First we were told we needed a fat-free diet, then no carbs, then red meat was bad, skim milk is best, but actually no milk at all is good. What is considered nutritious and good for our bodies is constantly changing and this just causes more stress, like the pressure that mothers feel as mentioned in “Feeding the ‘organic child’: Mothering through ethical consumption” by Kate Cairns.