Popaganda: Watching What You Eat

Backtalk

What does it take to get “well”? When we think about wellness, especially right now, we tend to think of it as everything we do to make our lives and bodies healthy. Rather than defining health through the negation of sickness, wellness advocates press that being “well” is an ongoing process of maintenance and care. But so much of what we think about wellness is so wrapped up in watching and being watched—through fitness apps, Instagram, bureaucracy, or just the day-to-day experience of going to the grocery store.

On this episode of Popaganda, Soleil will be talking with a few folks about that peculiar facet of wellness. First, food writer Serena Maria Daniels shares her experience of growing up in a family that participated in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and how it feels to apply for the program as an adult. Then she talks to Dr. Elizabeth Hoover, assistant professor of American Studies at Brown University, about the ways in which Native American communities have fought for control over their food supply. Finally, eating disorder specialist Renee McGregor walks her through the trouble with “clean eating,” and the ways in which food bloggers can inadvertently encourage disordered eating.