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From Instagram to TV Ads, What’s the Science Behind Food Porn?

  • March 20, 2017

They say a picture’s worth a thousand words, and when it comes to selling you something to eat, the food industry has photo presentations down to a science. As reported by The Guardian, visual appeal is everything when it comes to desire for, and consuming, food whether it’s presented to you by a chef in a restaurant or through ads on TV — or even by social media sharing.

It’s no secret that the food industry has dozens of tricks up its sleeves to convince you to make processed foods your chief dietary choice. The goal, of course, is to make big bucks by selling you anything you’re willing to swallow, even though most of what you’re eating is fake, sugar-laden, grain-heavy and filled with chemicals designed to fool your taste buds into thinking it’s good for you. 

The goal of food technologists is to reduce the amount of real ingredients by finding substitutes that mimic the real thing; the end product looks, smells and tastes like “good food,” but really is anything but. For example, you can easily consume 100 mg of artificial food dye per day just by eating packaged, processed foods — and dyes are just a fraction of the problem. Whether it’s a fast food restaurant hamburger, potato chips or packaged cookies, processed foods are full of additives and fake ingredients.

Food industry tricks are endless, but you can beat the industry at its own game by choosing REAL foods that are fresh, organic and whole. You can also buy your food directly from high-quality, local sources such as farmers markets and stores that sell organic foods, dairy and meats.