Instagram Food Trends – Are They Influencing Your Diet?

Pre-internet, photographing food was largely a professional art designed to fill recipe books with lavish, tempting images.

Now anyone with a smartphone is viewing food in a whole new light; mostly one with artistically arranged shadows. Does it make sense?

Restaurant chefs find the explosion of Instagram food photography infuriating and enlivening in equal numbers. Yes, some say it’s irritating to watch their precious creations go cold on restaurant tables as customers snap it from every angle. And yes, others say those very same shots entice new customers once posted.

As for the rest of us, the Instagram effect on our eating habits is about as bonkers as most things the internet has given us. But does it have its pluses? 

Young people are more interested in food

That’s a plus. Kids who would have happily shoveled whatever into their mouths blindfolded are now analysing their meals like food critics. Even if this analysis goes no deeper than “That red stuff looks nice,” it’s an interest being expressed by a huge pool of young people who previously had no interest at all.

If interest in ‘that red stuff’ can be harnessed by the more genuine and health-conscious Instagram food trendsetters, we have a game-changer on our hands.

With rising food trends like best healthy food on Instagram or 100 days of real food, things are certainly looking up!

Most Instagram food trendsetters aren’t Jamie Oliver

They’re not trying to get us eating food that’s Jamie Oliver quick and easy; they’re not even trying to get us eating fresh, fat-free and healthy. They’re just trying to get us eating into our credit card balance with spectacular looking dishes that do nothing for our diet.

Most Instagram food trendsetters are you

Think about that. There is no qualification or screening process to present food on Instagram. It’s persuasion through pictures. And if you can take a few nice shots, create the right story and generate the right hashtags, your pictures and diet gems will be gobbled up by the very same people who see Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus as the future of music.

It’s all in the hype.

That’s the Instagram Effect. Is it ruining food? This article certainly seems to think so! 

And there’s another problem.

Some of the healthiest foods are visually bland

Conversely, some of the more colourful, Instagram-friendly foods are all show and little substance. So a kaleidoscope of colour can be a collusion of nothingness and the most nutritious meal can be as photogenic as a bowl of gnawed chicken wings.

There’s a conundrum as we try to dissect the good from the bad on Instagram.

What are the best Instagram food trends?

Let’s face it, there is some good. Intuitive eating - #intuitiveeating - is all about tuning into satisfaction cues; in other words creating a better relationship between good food and enough food.

Work Week Lunch is another good one, offering quick, healthy meals for busy working people.

Healthy snacks can provide a quick, energy fix too. Read our post on '5 Energy boosting foods that give you energy.'

Do you have a flair for good nutrition? Take it to the next level with our 10967NAT Diploma of Nutrition which will give you a firm understanding of the fundamental principles of nutrition. Call us on 1300 616 180 and speak to one of our Careers Advisors for more information!