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Here, Wm. Alex McIntosh analyzes the relationship between food and nutrition and social factors, using a wide array of sociological theories. The author applies theories of social organization, culture, social stratification, social change, rural sociology, the sociology of the body, and social problems to empirical problems in food and nutrition. By doing so, he sheds light on issues such as the rise of the state; population growth; famine; obesity; eating disorders; the maldistribution of food across class, gender, and ethnic boundaries; and the changing nature of the food industry.
List of contents
1. Introduction.- 2. An Overview of Sociological Approaches to Food and Nutrition.- 3. Culture and Food.- 4. The Social Organization of Food Activities and Nutritional Status.- 5. Social Stratification: The Distribution of Food and Nutrition.- 6. The Body and Sociology.- 7. The Sociology of Famine.- 8. Food and Social Change.- 9. The State and Food and Nutrition.- 10. Food and Nutrition as Social Problems.- 11. The Sociology of Food and Nutrition: A Sociological Assessment.- References.
Report
`An invaluable resource to anyone interested in socio-cultural aspects of food and nutrition.'
Social Science and Medicine, May 1998
`[McIntosh] engages an enourmous range of social theory, providing some excellent summaries of current areas...[that] point to many research questions sociologists should pursue. The text is written for practicing sociologists and would be excellent for graduate students.'
Contemporary Sociology, Spring 1998
`A welcomed and remarkable book, a first of its kind...most noteworthy is the useful review and synthesis of relevant sociological literature and the diverse food and nutrition literature...I highly recommend this book to anyone who has interest in food and nutrition, whether they are sociologists, nutritionists, anthropologists, or workers in any other related field. There is so much information and so many insights contained in this book, almost everyone will find something useful in it.'
Rural Sociology, 62(2), 1997
