We are in the era of choice. And the diet does not escape the rule. At the time of Europe, over-mediaisation and cultural mixing, the content of our plates is necessarily "world", like our clothes, our furniture and the music we listen to.

But it is also macrobiotic: fast food, gastronomic or junk, because we eat according to our moods. Eclectic, like our time.

A feeding behavior that says a lot about our society

Town planner and urban sociologist, François Ascher ¹ has studied our eating behavior which is, according to him, an excellent revealer of our society. And what he has highlighted is precisely this hypermodern tendency to eclecticism.

"Multiple personality is no longer a pathology but a skill, says the sociologist.More people use more and more rationalities: economy, pleasure, control of the body, health, ethics ... And give in to one or the other depending on the circumstances, which gives eclectic eaters. "

So are our menus and how we dress each morning. We adapt them to the context, the feeling of the day, our means, our health or caloric obsessions.

"The only choice we do not have is that of not choosing," says François Ascher, "there is, moreover, in our society such an injunction to be oneself, responsible for its decisions, that a 'tired of being oneself' and even a real fatigue of choice. "

This can lead to eating disorders: anorexia, bulimia, orthorexia (the obsession with healthy eating) ... and also new rituals.

This is how you become addicted to junk-food, vegetarian, organic or bon vivant. In order to escape, a time, the vertigo of the possible. Four women tell us their very personal story with their fridge. Which says a lot about their personal life.

Diane, 28 years old, bio follower

Profession : graphic designer.

Budget: 35 euros per day.

"Teenager, I had to lose 10 kg Since then, I am attentive to all that I'm in. Gradually, I went organic, for the quality of food, but also for the respect of the environment. eat a lot of soya and green vegetables, cereals or bread with every meal, I avoid red meat and dairy products, but I'm not extreme: at the restaurant or on weekends with friends, I'm adaptte ... I also devour a basket of bread impregnated with olive oil without a state of mind. "

Dr. Zermati, a nutritionist and behavioral therapist ² : "Diane obviously did not get over 10 kg of her teenage years, she does not put this concern forward, but we can guess her, under her passion for bio. Menus are healthy and low in calories, but they can crack ... She seems to have a complex relationship with eating. "

Dr. Serfaty-Lacrosnière, Nutritionist Physician ³ : " Diane's eating behavior is very healthy, full of vitamins and trace elements, and her high-protein meals (soy and fish) allow her to keep a line that is certainly slender and toned. calcium intake is insufficient.To achieve the recommended intake (three dairy products per day for women up to 50 years), I would advise him to drink a calcium-enriched mineral water - type Hépar or Contrex. "

Diane: "So much the better if I eat healthy Calcium, I find some cereals and seaweed Complete with mineral water, why not ... It's true, I maintain a complex relationship with the But organic is not related to my concern for weight: between semi-skimmed milk and soymilk, there is not a big difference in calories, it's really a search for taste and quality."

Anne, 28 years old, good living

Profession: lawyer

Budget: 45 euros per day.

"I come from a family where meals are an institution: starter, main course and dessert, we take our time and savor it, it certainly influenced me in the cult I devote to gastronomy." My culinary curiosity is insatiable and I eat all my meals in the restaurant, even if I leave a good part of my salary there, I eat without ever depriving myself or forbidding anything of all things: between deli meats and fruit salads, I imagine that does not balance so badly and then, as I do regular sports, it compensates. "

Dr. Zermati: "This is someone who is guided by pleasure, Anne eats spontaneously, without wondering if it's good or bad for her weight or cholesterol." It's very good and obviously It is not his appetite but his 'curiosity' which is insatiable, according to her, diversity makes her happy, and the balance is all by itself.

Dr. Serfaty-Lacrosnière: "Anne's eating behavior is pleasant, while remaining balanced because she respects the rule of the three essential components of a plate: proteins, starchy foods, vegetables.However, she eats too much fat and sweetness in the morning ( 3 madeleines = 2 tablespoons of oil), too heavy and alcoholic in the evening Drinking the liter and a half of water recommended per day would help to relieve his excesses. "

Anne: "I did not think my breakfasts were so fat, and now I'll take the time to eat whole-grain bread instead of pastries, but it's true that cholesterol is not my concern. I have always listened to my desires, and I am doing very well.I think it is precisely by focusing on his balance that we take pounds, everything is in the head. "

Anne, 27, addicted to junk-food

Profession: graphic designer.

Budget: 15 euros per day.

"Gamine already, I replaced the vegetables with buttered toast I cook as fast as possible, the simplest and the most economic Frozen dishes, fast food, pastries ... My fridge is only used to cram the bottles of juice and Coke When I'm invited, I'm happy to eat healthier food, but I only prefer my palate with good things - obviously fat and sweet - it makes me nervous, but I've been weighing 50kg since ten years, so why deprive me? "

Dr. Zermati: "I do not like the word junk-food, which translates the idea of ​​dependence, Anne is more like a girl who is left alone at home and who benefits ... What motivates her It is speed, no doubt she is in a state of cognitive dissonance: she knows that she is acting against her good, which does not prevent her from eating healthy among her friends, but we are all ambivalent beings. "

Dr. Serfaty-Lacrosnière: "In addition to being high-calorie, the fat and sweet products of fast food are falsely satiating.If her good metabolism spares her weight gain, Anne eventually increases her risk of cardiovascular disease In addition, she is exposed to significant vitamin deficiencies.Why not replace the Coca-Cola (8 sugars per glass) with water, and be reconciled with fruits and vegetables? Cherry tomatoes or juice pressed fruit can also be fun. "

Anne: "Coca-Cola is my fuel since childhood, before I drank two liters a day, I started at breakfast so I have already made a lot of progress. I do not find myself in the word 'gamine' My eating behavior is unconstrained, that's all I'll be more careful when I ask myself, for example, a family life.

Géraldine, 30, vegetarian

Profession: interior designer.

Budget: 35 euros per day.

"I converted to vegetarianism at the age of 14, having watched documentaries about slaughterhouses, but I'm not an austere vegetarian, I'm very greedy and good-natured, crazy about pasta and, above all, about cheese. I like cooking pies, lasagna or mixed salads, which inevitably translates into a few extra pounds ... which fly off as soon as I start my soup-salad diet. "

Dr. Zermati: "There is something childish in this way of being vegetarian (Geraldine is afraid to eat her baby comforter), but it is also a trend in our society, where animals are very close to us." Géraldine is, in fact, a very thoughtful diet that respects the animals and reasonably monitors their weight and mentally controls them. "

Dr. Serfaty-Lacrosnière: " It is often the concern of the vegetarians' eating behavior: Géraldine lacks protein, it should be eaten at least once a day and can be found in eggs or in plants: lentils, soya , tofu, seeds ... For the same reason, the soup-salad diet is not recommended because, instead of attacking the fat mass, it causes a muscular wasting.To prevent the pounds come back soon, it is better to limit your cheese intake, eat more bread or pasta at lunchtime, lighten your dinners and do a lot of sports. "

Géraldine: "My only problem is a deficiency of iron, which I fill with tablets and to lose my extra pounds, I prefer to deprive myself at lunch time when I'm alone, rather than at night .. As for my choice not to eat animals, it is not a calculation so thoughtful, besides, it would be bad: I just took 3 kg ... As for the fear of eating my baby, I 've found one who loves it ... "

¹ Author of "The hypermodern eater". Ed. Odile Jacob.
² Author of "lose weight without diet". Ed. Odile Jacob
³ Author of " How I got extra pounds: ... and found the slimming method that works for me!". Ed. marabou