**5. Conclusion**

Talking about the meaning of food and food is talking about the main diseases that occur in this XXI century as well as before, during and after the contingency by COVID-19, such as the impacts that an obsolete economic system has had on reduce people's health and generate an impact on the environment. The multidisciplinary approach allowed to have indicators with which the origin and trajectory of the health-disease processes must be understood from the meaning of food, such as: an economic system and production of goods and services different from that of 40 years ago. That has changed the lifestyle of people, with greater sedentary

**193**

*Meaning and Health Impact of Food: Historical and Ecological Analysis*

*What effects does colonization have on a food system?*

• The loss and waste of food as a devaluation of food.

lifestyle, time to rest and eat, family life, greater stress, greater access to processed or industrialized food, with processes that entail great environmental impacts on

• Consider agroecological models instead of traditional ones: Faced with the health and environmental impacts that the prevailing agri-food system has generated, it is proposed as an alternative to agroecology, since it allows us to rebuild sustainable production systems that take as a principle the biophysical limits of nature, allowing biodiversity. Agroecology in turn promotes the channels between producers and consumers through access to healthy food in short proximity circuits, recognizing the importance of peasant wisdom and a

• Obesogenic environments have changed food culture and therefore the concept

• Technology for social benefits and to increase the conservation of food without compromising the benefit of being consumed fresh to obtain the greatest

Finally, the exponential growth of the population leads to a demand for food that has justified the use of agrochemicals, but the production of more food also generates greater loss and waste of food, in addition to not achieving a nutritional enrichment of food in the face of soil. That has been deteriorating. Work life has led to both parents of a household having the need to both go out to work, without being able to invest in food education and therefore generate a food culture, leaving food and therefore destiny in the hands of the agribusiness of the health of minors or any member of the family. The lack of physical activity and time, coupled with greater access to energy-dense foods is what has contributed to the increase in the statistics of chronic degenerative diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemias. Despite living in an era with greater access to information than ever before, the evidence shows that the act of eating and deciding is somewhat more complex, as is the complexity of human development itself, but this complexity is the methodology that It must be considered to address the current obesogenic environments through the approach and understanding of the meaning of food and

With the advent of science and biotechnology, such as the production of high fructose corn syrup, coupled with the contradictory social policies on food that took place in governments since the 70's, where the increase in the consumption of soft drinks began. In the Mexican population, a disarticulation in achieving health indicators in the population laid the foundations since the boost to the sugar union that was justified with foreign companies with great conflicts of interest, and accelerated growth in the country, lead to a lack of control in terms of economy that will contribute to health promotion. It has always been said that Mexican food is extremely rich and diverse in ingredients, that is true, but it is also true that it contains many elements that are not suitable for a good diet. Knowing how we have developed our food culture allows us to understand the positive and negative effects it has had. The latter should lead us to reflect on the interactions that are generated with health, food, ecology, social, economic, and

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.96371*

water, soil, and air.

political aspects.

right to food.

of health-disease.

benefit from its nutrients.

health from an ecological and historical context.

#### *Meaning and Health Impact of Food: Historical and Ecological Analysis DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.96371*

*Natural History and Ecology of Mexico and Central America*

Cholesterol and triglycerides in the population aged 20 years

*Comparison between main results of the ENSANUT\* 2012 vs. 2018.*

**Indicators ENSANUT\*** 

**2012 Percentage (%)**

**ENSANUT\* 2018 Percentage (%)**

13 19.5

of food and accessibility to them by the population, a recent study found that the consumption of two glasses a day of soda was associated with higher mortality [OR, 1.17; 95% CI: 1.11–1.22; P < 0.001], mainly in participants who presented

Food security 30 44.5 Diarrheal disease from 0 to 4 years old. 11 11.8 Diabetes in the population aged 20 years and over 9.2 10.3 Hypertension in the population aged 20 years and over. 16.6 18.4

Tobacco habit in the population 10 to 19 years old 1.5 a 9.5 5.1 Exclusive breastfeeding 14.4 28.6

*National Health and Nutrition Survey [ENSANUT].*

What are the impacts of the industrial revolution up to the era of globalization? Where mobility and commercial exchange (products, services, and food) is more efficient while work and family life is more sedentary and inheritance or eating habits are acquired from social networks, television, different media [17]. The integration of sugar and with it a boom in sugar mills until its replacement in the era of biofuels (high fructose corn syrup). Although the factors associated with obesity and chronic diseases are multiple, the medical literature shows that the consumption of sugary drinks and diets with high energy density are two of the risk factors

The act of eating is complex, food has a vital component by providing nutrients for the functioning of the human body or organism; but food has cultural meanings, attributes, it is something more than the sum of food, something more than its nutrients or culinary preparation or knowing the origin of these [17]. This meaning will depend on internal and external factors, the latter such as social, political and economic factors that give meaning and that act becomes beyond thinking only about nutrients and health. This must be considered to integrate the meanings.

Talking about the meaning of food and food is talking about the main diseases that occur in this XXI century as well as before, during and after the contingency by COVID-19, such as the impacts that an obsolete economic system has had on reduce people's health and generate an impact on the environment. The multidisciplinary approach allowed to have indicators with which the origin and trajectory of the health-disease processes must be understood from the meaning of food, such as: an economic system and production of goods and services different from that of 40 years ago. That has changed the lifestyle of people, with greater sedentary

obesity, although not for those who were overweight [34].

that contribute to the excess burden of these diseases.

**4.1 The meaning of eating**

and over

**Table 3.**

*Source: Monroy-Torres R [33].\**

**192**

**5. Conclusion**

lifestyle, time to rest and eat, family life, greater stress, greater access to processed or industrialized food, with processes that entail great environmental impacts on water, soil, and air.

With the advent of science and biotechnology, such as the production of high fructose corn syrup, coupled with the contradictory social policies on food that took place in governments since the 70's, where the increase in the consumption of soft drinks began. In the Mexican population, a disarticulation in achieving health indicators in the population laid the foundations since the boost to the sugar union that was justified with foreign companies with great conflicts of interest, and accelerated growth in the country, lead to a lack of control in terms of economy that will contribute to health promotion. It has always been said that Mexican food is extremely rich and diverse in ingredients, that is true, but it is also true that it contains many elements that are not suitable for a good diet. Knowing how we have developed our food culture allows us to understand the positive and negative effects it has had. The latter should lead us to reflect on the interactions that are generated with health, food, ecology, social, economic, and political aspects.

*What effects does colonization have on a food system?*


Finally, the exponential growth of the population leads to a demand for food that has justified the use of agrochemicals, but the production of more food also generates greater loss and waste of food, in addition to not achieving a nutritional enrichment of food in the face of soil. That has been deteriorating. Work life has led to both parents of a household having the need to both go out to work, without being able to invest in food education and therefore generate a food culture, leaving food and therefore destiny in the hands of the agribusiness of the health of minors or any member of the family. The lack of physical activity and time, coupled with greater access to energy-dense foods is what has contributed to the increase in the statistics of chronic degenerative diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemias. Despite living in an era with greater access to information than ever before, the evidence shows that the act of eating and deciding is somewhat more complex, as is the complexity of human development itself, but this complexity is the methodology that It must be considered to address the current obesogenic environments through the approach and understanding of the meaning of food and health from an ecological and historical context.

*Natural History and Ecology of Mexico and Central America*
