Abstract This paper examines diet jokes and the Israeli women's attitude towards the diet culture. An analysis of jokes connected to dieting. An examination of the attitudes of women towards the pressures of dieting by relating to the themes revealed in diet jokes. The thesis is supported by interviews with Israeli women and participation in an Israeli weight watchers group.
Contents
Chapter 1:
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Origins of the ?Diet Culture?
1.3 Diet Culture Ideology
1.4 Feminist Critique of the ?Diet Culture?
1.5 Studying Culture through Humor
1.6 Overview of Following Chapters
Chapter 2: Field Methods:
2.1 The Field
2.2 The Research Population
2.3 Participant Observation as a "Native Anthropologist"
2.4 Text Analysis
Chapter 3: Diet Humor
3.1 The Difference between Diet Jokes and Fat Jokes
3.2 Themes in Diet Humor:
A. Diet Rules and Practice
B. Diet Products
C. Diet Culture Ideology
D. Clothes and Fashion
E. Diet Culture, Food and Social Interaction
Chapter 4: Discussion and Conclusions
4.1 Diet Humor as Resistance
4.2 Diet Humor as Solidarity between Women
4.3 Conclusion
Bibliography
Appendix
From the Paper "This M.A. thesis is an ethnographic study of humor produced and used by young Israeli women who are part of the Israeli "diet culture". The goal of this thesis is to answer the questions: what is "diet humor"? How does it relate to "diet culture"? What impact does it have on the everyday lives of young women in Israel and to answer the additional question: does the appearance of "diet humor" signify a form of resistance to the prevailing "diet culture"? As I will discuss further on in this chapter, "diet culture" is very closely linked to consumer culture (Bordo, 1995, Featherstone, 1991) and the capitalist market (Turner, 1982). Advertisers and the mass media, which are financed by advertising, construct its images. Purchasing and using a range of aggressively marketed diet "products" carry out its practices. In Israel, that seems to idealize American culture, many diet culture images and products have been imported from the USA and are currently being marketed by Israeli companies."
Abstract The ability of life to adapt to new environments is one of the principle foundations of Natural Selection. The paper shows that, given the great importance of diet on the course of our evolutionary past, it is astounding that more research has not been conducted on the origins of our dieting habits. The literature that has been written on the subject of diet has taken on many forms. Some researchers have focused on the social origins of diet and how it affects different categories of people, while others have focused on the cognitive functions behind different dieting behaviors. This literature review examines some of the past research that has been conducted and attempts to put this research into an evolutionary based frame.
From the Paper "This model theorizes that females, since females bear young, would establish small groups near a constant food source in order to ensure the health of young offspring. Males, on the other hand, would have a larger territory that would encompass several smaller female groups. Males would roam this territory and be constantly on the move, allowing for males to eat a wider (but less constant) diet. Males would therefore have a predisposition to eat anything that could be eaten, and therefore care less about the "healthy" aspect of the foodstuff. Females, having maintained a constant source of food over several generations, would be more selective with their caloric intake and only choose to eat the healthier foods."
Abstract This paper begins with a brief synopsis of the Atkins diet and the medical philosophy behind the diet. The paper then reviews studies on the diet's short-term safety and effectiveness and cites the positive results of these studies, while at the same time noting the lack of sufficient medical studies done on the long-term safety and effectiveness of the diet.
From the Paper "Recent research suggests that the low-carbohydrate Atkins diet is safe and effective in the short term. Today, millions of Americans follow the Atkins diet, making questions of safety and effectiveness increasingly important. In controlled studies, those on the Atkins diet lost more weight, had bigger increases in heart-friendly HDL cholesterol and had larger decreases in triglyceride levels when compared to dieters on a "normal" diet. Despite the diet's clear short-term success, the long-term effectiveness and safety of the diet have not been conclusively established, although a diet that combines the traditional Atkins diet with low fat may help to reduce some of these potential risks. Overall, the Atkins diet seems to be an effective way to shed pounds, at least in the short term. The Atkins diet may provide an effective and safe means to improve health, even when potential concerns about the diet are contrasted against the documented and well-known dangers of obesity."
Abstract This article examines aspects of the Atkins diet. The writer discusses whether or not the diet is an effective program for weight loss. The paper also looks at the problems related to high protein and high fat diets. The writer discusses the dangers of ketosis that such diets induce.
From the Paper "Low-carbohydrates diets do bring about weight loss in the short-term but their long-term effects are no better than other diets. The Atkins diet is a high protein high fat diet with very low carbohydrate intake. It has been shown to work for weight loss over the short-term, but there are doubts about its ability to work over the long-term. It is difficult to adhere to such a low-carbohydrate regimen long-term. Two recent studies reported in the New England Journal of ... "
Abstract This paper examines the effects of a high fat/low-carbohydrate diet such as Atkins, on body weight and composition. This paper compares such a high fat diet to the effects of a calorie-reduced, fat-restricted diet in an attempt to answer the question of whether weight loss occurs because of a metabolic advantage. Metabolic advantage means that the body begins to use fat as energy due to a lowered carbohydrate intake.
From the Paper "One possible reason that the subjects in the Pogliaghi and Veicsteinas (1999) study did not appear to benefit from a low-carbohydrate/high fat diet might be that they have not been participating in endurance training. As an individual exercises, the resulting muscle contractions are done using ATP. How the body creates and uses this ATP is dependant upon the amount of the energy sources available, and the intensity and duration of the exercise. In all individuals, even those who are non-obese, glycogen is generally used for ATP and thus, during moderate exercise, the body creates ATP from available glycogen. As the intensity of exercise is increased, oxygen levels in the body decrease, which makes the creation of ATP difficult. The body, at this point, will begin to burn fat to substitute for this lack of ability. Since prolonged endurance training has the affect of conditioning the muscles to "crossover" to burn glycogen after longer time duration, trained individuals will burn more fat and less glycogen than untrained individuals will. This might explain why the study done by Pogliaghi and Veicsteinas (1999) yielded such results as it did, since the individuals in the study were not trained athletes."
Abstract In this essay, the writer argues that diet pops are so dangerous for one's health that it would be better if people just ate sugar. The writer maintains that even though sugar is bad for people's health, it is not as bad as the aspartame in diet pops. The writer shows that there is much evidence to support this. As demonstrated in this article, there is also evidence to show that aspartame is not bad for people. However, the writer claims that if this evidence is examined one finds that the evidence may be biased. The writer explains that this is because some research is paid for by the diet pop companies.
Abstract This paper analyzes the influence of mass media on the everyday diet of Americans. The author discusses the inconsistencies of food and nutrition news reported by the media that confuse and frustrate consumers and lead to poor diet and lifestyle choices.
From the Paper "Breakfast may be the most important meal of the day, but you may need a scorecard to decide what to eat. Will knocking back a few cups of java (a) raise your risk of pancreatic cancer, (b) lead to arthritis, or (c) protect you from Parkinson's disease? Is it butter or margarine that is healthier on your toast? Are eggs OK or did you get the message scrambled? One has good reason to be confused and not just at breakfast. Americans get the bulk of their nutrition news from TV, magazines, and newspapers where the latest findings are proclaimed by just about anyone in a lab coat (Kulman 1). These findings are sometimes contradictory to established research conclusions and leave consumers unsure of what to really think."
Abstract This paper analyzes and examines the issue of women and dieting. In Part II it discusses how women have come to perceive themselves as sex objects. Part III examines the various eating disorders and diets women follow to attain this perfect body image. Part IV outlines ways in which women are now finally coming to terms with reality and the fact that women do not and cannot all be carbon copies of what they see in magazines, movies, newspapers, and television.
From the Paper "The idealized female body as seen in the media is tall, toned, and thin. Women who are thin are seen as "in control" and exude power and self-confidence whereas overweight women are seen as lazy and lacking self-discipline. What most individuals overlook is the fact that advertising and media use many different techniques to create perfect images of female beauty. For example, we do not see the body doubles and computer retouching used to manipulate images. In reality, most women portrayed as sex objects in the media do not look that way in everyday, normal life."
Abstract This paper presents a description of both Italian and American cuisines and shows what is at the root between those differences and between the people who live on each diet. It defines American food as fast, convenience foods, while Italian meals are slower prepared and more nutritious. The health benefits and risks of each form of diet is discussed.
From the Paper "There are noticeable differences in the diets of people from different countries, even between those of a similar geographic area. One has only to compare Italian to French cuisine to see that though both share parts of the same landmass, both nations have very differently evolved diets, cooking styles, and kitchen staples. The European attitude toward food, however, is quite unified. Europeans generally enjoy their food for the visceral effects, the beauty and simplicity (or complexity) of the food, and treat it with respect. Americans, on the other hand, have a very different attitude toward food. American culture is based upon speed and convenience. Where once home-cooks prepared complex, multi-course meals for the entire family to savor and enjoy together, now the American household dinner is more often than not divided between the separate eating times of the family members, prepared with a minimum of from-scratch ingredients, and relies heavily upon pre-prepared frozen, canned, and other food items. Because of this, speed and efficiency are the hallmark of the American diet."
Abstract This paper looks at the Suzanne Somers diet and what it entails. The paper looks at its scientific and medical validity, costs, and whether or not it is hazardous to health. Additionally, the paper examines whether it is a good diet to recommend for weight loss.
From the Paper "The Suzanne Somers diet is not very well explained even in her book, according to all the reviews. Her descriptions of the program are very vague and one reviewer says it would be hard to understand how anyone would lose weight on it, yet also says that the diet appeared to only allow about calories a day which is very restrictive. Another says the information in her latest book seems to contradict some of what she has said before. The diet is basically a low carbohydrate..."
Abstract The paper discusses evidence for and against the Atkins diet, which calls for a reduction in carbohydrate intake. The paper discusses the recommendations on carbohydrates by the government and the medical establishment and evidence offered by critics of the Atkins approach, including concerns on the part of some doctors that the diet may be dangerous.
From the Paper "The Atkins diet has been the subject of considerable controversy as it has become popular, leading to concerns on the part of some doctors that the diet may be dangerous. This diet is a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet, promising weight loss from a change in dietary habits in terms of reducing the consumption of carbohydrates and increasing the consumption of protein rather than by simply reducing intake. In this way, the diet promises that dieters will lose weight without going hungry. The Atkins diet was developed by Dr. Atkins in 1972."
Abstract This paper discusses Mimi Richter's book on teen dieting and how parents can cope with it. It details several extensive research interviews with a large group of girls over an extended period of time and looks at what teen girls and their parents had to say about the issues of body image and weight control. It discusses the whole female body weight issue in American culture from an anthropological point of view.
From the Paper "In the book Fat Talk: What Girls and their Parents Say about Dieting, the author Mimi Richter looks at one aspect of teen culture ? perceptions of body image ? from an anthropologist's standpoint. The author explains why she feels an examination of these issues from outside the medical community is important. She reports that she sees many articles in magazines, newspapers and other sources about eating disorders, but notes that only 1 ? 3% of teens actually have some kind of eating disorder. She describes this kind of exaggeration ?a "propensity to pathologize youth" (p. 2). "
A review of a study, "Semen Quality of Fertile U.S. Males in Relation to Their Mothers' Beef Consumption During Pregnancy," by S.H. Swan, F. Liu, J.W. Overstreet, C. Brazil and N.E. Skakkebaek, on the effect of diet on pregnancy.
Abstract The paper is a review of a study on the effect of diet on pregnancy and discusses the relation of men's semen parameters to their mothers' intake of beef during their pregnancies. The study, "Semen Quality of Fertile U.S. Males in Relation to Their Mothers' Beef Consumption During Pregnancy," by S.H. Swan, F. Liu, J.W. Overstreet, C. Brazil and N.E. Skakkebaek, which is included with this paper, is well-documented with references and tables. The paper relates that partners of pregnant women took part in the study and recorded whether the male's mother had consumed beef or not and whether or not the consumption of beef during pregnancy had any effect on their son's fertility.
Outline:
Methodological Aspects
Research Design
Methods
Interpretive Aspects
Ethical Aspects
From the Paper "How were issues of reliability and validity of the measures adequately addressed? The deciding variables for the subjects were analyzed statistically, and the mother's beef consumption was compared with their son's recorded sperm concentration. Sub fertile men's sperm concentration was examined in relation to the amount of beef their mothers consumed during pregnancy, and all men's sperm count was transformed with a logarithmic base 10 in order to distribute the parameter more evenly. Other factors taken into consideration in the analysis were the men's age, smoking, alcohol, body mass index (BMI), history of STD, abstinence time, and their own meat consumption. The mother's age, whether or not she smoked, whether or not she nursed her son and her meat consumption were initially examined in the model. This selection of variants was based on their proven importance in past studies, biological plausibility, sufficient numbers and evidence of the effect on the strength of the association with beef consumption."
Abstract Advertising has long been associated with unreasonable claims, in fact, we have come to expect them. Advertisements quite often imply qualities about the products and people within the context of the ad that are simply impossible. Over the long-term, our culture has grown to accept advertisements as a fiction into which we are drawn for 30 seconds. During that time, the viewer suspends disbelief because of the formula at play and simply accepts the fiction that surrounds the product. In the realm of diet advertising, however, such fictions have turned out to be potentially dangerous or even deadly. Diet product and diet advertising has long made irrational claims about enormous changes in the body over impossibly short periods of time. Research shows that the level of false advertising in commercials for diets and diet products is staggeringly high. The FTC found that 55 percent of weight-loss ads make claims that lack proof or very likely are false (Eggerton, 2002). In fact, this problem has been ongoing since one of the first false-advertising in diet commercials claims was made; in 1993, the Federal Trade Commission charged that five of the nation's largest commercial diet-program companies have misled consumers by making unsubstantiated weight-loss claims and by using deceptive testimonials ("FTC Accuses Five Diet Programs of Deceptive Advertising", 1993; Cordes, 1993). It is proposed that research will demonstrate that the effect of false advertising (and thus false expectations) about diets and diet products has resulted in a greater health crisis in relation to weight than ever before.
