Strength, focus, and faith: performance society and (bad) eating behavior

Abstract

The current context in which we are inserted offers a standard model to be followed in which individuals need to be highly productive. This lifestyle is not exercised via coercion, but via self-entrepreneurship, that is, strength, focus, and faith are the (self-)imposed watchwords that guide human behavior. This is also reflected in the relationship established between the body and food. The result of this process is the mental, social, and physical illness of the population. In the face of that, this essay sought to develop the relationship between the concept of burnout society and contemporary eating, to investigate, understand, and reflect on the impact of this model on eating behavior that touches both the clinical practice of the nutritionist and the field of collective health. In constructing this text, authors from the human and social sciences, collective health, and nutrition were mobilized to mediate the discussions.