Healthy Food... But Healthy For Whom?

Situation; Anuj and Riti, a recently married couple in Bengaluru, had just moved from paying guest accommodation into their own apartment. Excited about setting up their first kitchen, they decided they would eat only "healthy foods." After searching AI many times, they stocked their shelves with quinoa, chia seeds, oats, almonds, walnuts, avocado spreads, imported cereals and every other food that regularly appeared in healthy eating recommendations.

One weekend, Riti's mother Ragini came to stay with them. She was surprised to see both looking dull and exhausted. While making tea, she opened the kitchen cupboards and refrigerator. Everything looked "healthy." But something felt missing. She smiled and asked, "When was the last time both of you ate simple dal, roti, vegetables, curd or khichdi?" Riti replied, "Mummy... AI kept suggesting these healthy foods. We thought this is what healthy people eat."

Ragini quietly changed the kitchen over the next few days. Within a week, both youngsters began feeling much better.

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Thought 1; "If AI and nutrition experts repeatedly recommend these foods, perhaps the couple simply wasn't disciplined enough to follow the diet properly."

Thought 2; Maybe it begins with understanding what suits a particular person, family, culture and lifestyle.

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Reflection; What thinking comes closest to your own? If you were responsible for marketing a health food brand, what would you learn from this conversation before planning your communication?

Mentor's Reflection; Healthy is not a universal label. Healthy is always personal. Information becomes useful only when it is interpreted in the context of real people and real lives.