Dietary practices and gender dynamics: understanding the role of women

Abstract The culturally embedded habitus forms esthetic sensibilities; that is, the culture of a specific community group is internalized through the process of socialization. Habitus extends to our sense of taste for cultural objects such as art, food, and clothing. In a traditional society like in India, the family is an institution with norms and values attached to it. Furthermore, it is a woman who usually cooks in a traditional society. Therefore, the sociocultural belief system and customs play a crucial role in shaping dietary practices. Hence, discussing the choices and decisions that women make related to food could unravel the gender dimensions. Exploring the dynamics of gender could help policymakers, legislators, and other stakeholders to adopt an integrated approach to amalgamate the element of inclusivity while framing the schemes and policies related to food security. The present study has used the QDA Miner Lite software for the grounded theory approach to conclude that women are the center of food choices. Moreover, food selection depends upon religious inclinations, the belief system, relative position and status in society, cultural traditions and customary laws, etc.