Ninth International Conference on Food Studies

Abstract

Eating and food choices form an important part of everyday life from nutrition to the maintenance of cultural and national ties. However, some food choices are tied to health consequences, such as obesity and diabetes. In particular, obesity has become an alarming health issue among U.S. Latinos – approximately 78.4 percent found to be overweight or obese (National Center for Health Statistics 2016). Obesity among Latino immigrants has been understood as a function of time in the U.S. through the acculturation framework, but we know little about how mechanisms, in particular food choice and gender roles, mediate the relationship between obesity and length of residence among immigrants. This work brings together the literature on gender, migration, and health to analyze how Mexican immigrant couples negotiate and make decisions about food choice, preparation, and preferences. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with 16 Mexican immigrant couples, I argue that food choice is a dynamic site where gender roles and cultural values are adjudicated throughout the life course. More specifically, I provide a typology that unpacks how food choice is negotiated among couples across four different periods: (1) migration; (2) marriage; (3) childrearing; and (4) aging health. I show that decisions about what food to eat are intimately tied to ideas about gender roles, including the value of men’s work and women’s household labor. Moreover, I reveal how negotiations around food evolve as couples deal with major life changes, such as raising children, and as they adapt to the consequences of aging.