2.1.- Food differences and social class
From various sociological perspectives, it is argued that social classes defined food standards in the past, but that they do not do so today as the increased availability of food has narrowed the gap. The processes of individualization and deregulation associated with “late modernity” seem to marginalize the effect of social classes on attitudes and eating habits. The link between social class and eating practices seems to have been subsumed by other social variables such as age or gender, if not broken. Obesity has revitalized this debate, since it most affects the most disadvantaged social strata.
2.2.- Family roles linked to nutrition
Traditionally, special attention has been paid to the assumption of women’s role as the natural caretakers of the family, thus assigning them responsibility for the entire set of domestic tasks, often to the detriment of their participation in the public sphere. The incorporation of women en masse into the labour market has led them to redefine their role and, in particular, their centrality in the organization and preparation of meals and in the decisions that these activities entail. When the role of the housewife becomes vacant, it becomes necessary to resort to services and products that help in the organization of domestic life and/or that fulfil the traditional functions of the housewife. Although attributing responsibility for food change to this trend is partial, more research should be done on this, including men’s joint responsibility, which has not yet been sufficiently explored.
2.3.- Health and food
The increase in obesity, particularly among children, has led to institutional concerns about nutrition. Several nutritional studies have confirmed the strong relationship between weight gain and poor eating habits. But the sociology of sport and the sociology of food come together in their interest in analysing the origin and transformation of the population’s lifestyles and the relationship between health, sport, and food. The perception of the body and aesthetics are related to eating habits, especially among the young population and especially among women, affecting their diet and the practice of exercise.