It Turns Out The Food Porn You Like Says A Lot About Who You Are As A Person
Instagram and food have had a long, happy marriage since the beginning. It's the perfect platform for showing off food porn, which is basically just beautiful food photography.
But taking a closer look, you'll probably notice there are only two different types of food porn. I came across this article about how "gluttony is back" in social media, and the author has a point. There's a clear divide between people who promote clean eating, and people who promote less than healthy habits.
The first kind is photos of carb and sugar-packed indulgences like cheesy pizza, doughnuts and boozy ice cream. The second kind is of healthier food like shots of avocado toast, smoothie bowls and colorful veggie plates.
Whatever type of food porn you subscribe to can say a lot about your relationship with food.
Instagram is full of accounts dedicated to fitness, wellness and "clean eating," along with accounts that are dedicated to posting mesmerizing images of mouth-watering indulgences. If you follow both types of accounts, your Instagram feed probably seems a little confused compared to your actual lifestyle.
The truth is, following accounts that focus on healthy eating indirectly make people feel ashamed of what's on their plate or in their kitchens. On the other hand, people who want to stay healthy probably feel a stronger urge to "cheat" if they follow accounts that post unhealthy food.
As someone who is health-focused, I feel weird about following Instagram accounts that just post pictures of burgers, fries and pizza. I'd rather keep those foods off my mind. I don't want to tease myself.
Since I'm avoiding those foods in real life, I should avoid putting them on my social media plate. And it works both ways.
This is a clear sign of how social media can affect our body image and eating habits. Have you ever really thought about the accounts you're following on Instagram, and why?
When it comes to shameless food porn, it's easy to relate to a post that promotes laziness and indulgent eating. The captions for these posts justify pigging out. They're usually along the lines of, "Pizza has vegetables on it, so that makes it like salad, right?"
And on posts showcasing beautiful, healthy meals, underneath them you'll read more of a humble brag type of caption. It's usually something like, "This was my breakfast after a killer 5-mile run at 5 am!"
Even though they're just Instagram posts, scrolling past food porn every day can influence your eating decisions. There's a reason they call it "food inspiration."
Mixed messages on your Instagram feed could truly be screwing with your health goals. Whether you're avoiding the pressure to diet or trying to eat healthier, following these types of food porn accounts can be detrimental to how you feel about what you're eating.
Even though it shouldn't be, eating is emotional. We eat based on our mood and environment. If part of your environment includes food porn on Instagram, it affects what ends up in your mouth, plain and simple.
