The flip side of cooking shows
Food shows might be making you hungry, but that’s not to say they’re always bad for your health. A renewed interest in cooking at home is a good thing—although what’s on the plate matters.
"It brings families together," Taub-Dix says. "The kitchen is the heart of the home. It’s wonderful all these chefs are bringing people into their homes and showing them ways to prepare food themselves."
Regular family meals have been linked to better communication and relationship building, higher achievement, and better grades in school, as well as greater nutrition for the entire family. Studies have also found that kids who participated in family dinners were less likely to be overweight, drink or abuse alcohol, smoke cigarettes, or use drugs.
In fact, the Cooking Channel is dedicated to just that—getting people excited about spending time in the kitchen and inspiring them to prepare much more than traditional, boring meatloaf. Salge Blake, the registered dietitian from Boston University, says she hopes food shows get more people to start cooking, think about where their food comes from, and make healthier choices.
Plus, all food shows aren’t plugging unhealthy fare. Some, such as the Food Network’s Healthy Appetite with Ellie Krieger, focus on health-conscious yet yummy meals, Taub-Dix notes. She wishes more shows "would get with the program," but even so, she’s "thrilled at the light that it’s shining on food."
No matter how you fry it, bake it, steam it, or grill it, we’re in the midst of a food revolution. We haven’t seen the public eye staring at food like this in quite some time, and if nothing else, it starts a mouthwatering conversation.
"Food entertainment has the potential to both harm and help us," Lowe says. "That same exposure to yummy foods could be turned into a therapeutic experience if people are taught how to get the most flavor without the most calories."
