Our dietary styles change with the development of technologies and emerging of new trends. Not only a basic consumer basket but also a size of portions and means of cooking transformed for the last 50 years. Vegetables are being replaced with processed food and portion sizes doubled and tripled. Formerly, people stuck to certain nutritional rules which obviously allowed them to preserve slim waists which cannot be said about the present-day Americans.
Shopping has become much of a challenge today. While our grandparents purchase vegetables from farmers, we prefer examining labels and packing. Formerly, slow food was much more conventional; people purchased more fresh vegetables and fish to cook tasty dishes. Shopping as well as cooking was women’s business; they were accountable for nurturing the whole family. Today men and women are equally involved in shopping. Busy lifestyle promotes shared responsibilities so that men sometimes cook as well. But most often, we cook in the microwave ovens. Processed food and ready meals took over fresh ingredients because we need so much time to cook a “slow” meals. 50 years ago, people consumed much more red meat, white bread, whole milk, and black tea. Today, we moved towards brown bread, skimmed milk, and reduced consumption of meat and tea.
Our grandparents had traditional time and place for their meals. In the twentieth century, people were much more disciplined about consuming food; they had their breakfast, lunch, and dinner at the same time every day, and meals were usually shared. Skipping breakfast and snacking on the go makes older people indignant when they see how their kids neglect essential rules.
Today we have numerous dietary styles which evolved with the scientific development. There were rather few vegetarians and vegans in the twentieth century.