Fat Integration...

Think back to your school days. Each day your mum used to pack your lunchbox and each day during the break you used to sit down to eat with some of your classmates or maybe even all of them. And during this break one of the other kids would probably unpack a lunch that was more than questionable for your taste. This might have been certain parts of animals which you would have never thought about eating or maybe rice and vegetables, which doesn’t sound strange in itself, but in order to eat it the kid used chop sticks. Seriously, what's the point of picking up one grain of rice after the other when a fork would come in so much handier? This kid was probably not the most well integrated in your school. Do eating habits have such tremendous effects on society that immigrants have problems getting integrated if they stick with their manners?

As the results of a study conducted by US psychologists show, the effects of eating habits on integration shouldn’t be underestimated. Feeling totally integrated is a desired goal for many immigrants, no matter which country they left and no matter which country they chose to live in. But what do they do in order to achieve integration? According to the study, food acts as a means of integration, causing Asian-Americans to choose fast food over food from their own culture in order to make a statement. They want to fit into the society of their new home country and they want to be integrated. 

Apparently, immigrants think that choosing the same food as natives do helps them achieve their goals. But do natives really appreciate this effort to an extent that helps immigrants? And furthermore, is eating fast food in order to be integrated worth the downside of these eating habits? We all know that burgers, hot dogs and fries are the very opposite of healthy food. They contain large amounts of trans fats and salt and minimal amounts of vitamins, all of which are counterproductive to maintaining a healthy diet. So, while working on becoming integrated, immigrants also work on becoming less healthy and gaining weight. Maybe, immigrants even see getting fat as something else that brings them closer to the rest of American society. The number of overweight people in the United States is immense. A third of children and teenagers are said to be overweight or even obese. And children of immigrants who have lived in America for at least 15 years show similar weight problems to American children.

The psychologists behind this study created an experiment situation by testing the eating habits of two groups, telling one group that they have to be American in order to be in the study and leaving the other group unnotified. Then they got to choose whatever dish from whatever national cuisine they wanted. The results were clear. Those who wanted to be seen as Americans ordered way more burgers, pizza or grilled cheese than the other group. When the research team analysed what had been eaten, the results showed that the 'supposed-to-be-American' group not only ordered typical American food but also ate an average of 182 calories and 7 grams of trans fats more than those who stuck with their native cuisine.

Using food as a means of integration should be reconsidered. Immigrants might feel better integrated when eating fast food but the more they consume of it, the worse their health. And what good is it if they feel integrated but die sooner after eating loads of unhealthy food? The occasional cheeseburger does no harm but people should make sure to keep the occasions rare. Besides McDonalds and all the other fast food chains and manufacturers of unhealthy food, no one takes advantage of unhealthy and fat people, be they from Asia, America or any other continent.