Food is about culture, history, joy, memories, and tradition, Rachel argues. “From a social standpoint, food connects us with friends, family, acquaintances, and coworkers. When you think about get-togethers with others, how often does it involve food?”
“The universality of food connects us in a way that not many other things can. The smell or taste of a specific food can trigger vivid memories from the past, both positive and negative. The creation and repetition of these memories form traditions that are critical to the bonds which bring us together,” she explained.
We asked why food plays such a big role in internet culture and social media. Rachel explained that since eating is an essential, universal daily activity, there's a very large potential audience for content about food.
“When you combine that universality with the internet's obsession with authenticity, niche food traditions can explode into the mainstream in exciting ways,” she said.
“The same virality can also have questionable consequences, whether by amplifying fad diets, introducing odd creations (pink sauce, anyone?) or playing into the negative stereotypes about what constitutes a healthy body size,” Rachel commented.
Similarly, in our previous interview with Dana Harron, Psy.D., a licensed clinical psychologist and the founder of Monarch Wellness & Psychotherapy, explained that "food is a big part of internet culture because it's a big part of our lives! Food is not just about nourishing our bodies, it serves a social function.”
According to her, gathering around shared food has been a vital part of cultures for millennia. “We find connectedness through sharing something that is so vital to our survival."
Meanwhile, in the internet age, Dr. Harron argues that social bonding over food takes a somewhat different form. “We 'meme' about food as a way of staying connected to our bodies and each other. Food has also come to serve an outsized function in many cultures; for example, in American culture many foods are seen as taboo but also reified, leaving many people with a deep conflict when they desire desserts or other foods that have been deemed 'unhealthy,'" Harron explained previously.
The importance of social bonding and its benefits on people’s well-being is backed up by science too. This study from the University of Oxford has revealed that the more often people eat with others, the more likely they are to feel happy and satisfied with their lives. The results suggested that communal eating increases social bonding and feelings of well-being, and enhances one’s sense of contentedness and embedding within the community.
Professor Robin Dunbar of the University of Oxford’s Experimental Psychology department argues that 'This study suggests that social eating has an important role in the facilitation of social bonding, and that communal eating may have even evolved as a mechanism for humans to do just that.”
Moreover, according to Prof. Dunbar, previous studies have already showed that social networks are important in combating mental and physical illness.
“A significant proportion of respondents felt that having a meal together was an important way of making or reinforcing these social networks. In these increasingly fraught times, when community cohesion is ever more important, making time for and joining in communal meals is perhaps the single most important thing we can do – both for our own health and wellbeing and for that of the wider community.”
