Food Buzzwords: Understanding How Schemas of Proper Dieting Are Formed

In the modern United States, the concept of food has become as much of a social
phenomenon as it is a biological need. The process of eating has become highly
structured into a system of communication. Food terms used to share ideas are referred to
as food buzzwords, terms rife with additional meanings whose values are continuously
debated, discussed, and altered. Such terminology has swayed how middle-class
Americans interpret the proper status quo of food consumption and production. This
thesis analyzes how middle-class Americans form their view of a proper diet based on
their understanding of food buzzwords and other factors that influence their food choices.