Eating Words

Food, parenting and identity with Dr Michelle Webster

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Dr Michelle Webster is a Lecturer in Sociology at Royal Holloway, University of London. Her research sits at the intersection between the sociology of food, childhood and the family as well as medical sociology. In this episode, we chat about:

  • the role that sociology can play in helping understand people's relationships with food
  • the links between the way people eat and their social identity
  • the concept of "intensive parenting" and how this can affect the way we feed children
  • the role of food in grandparent - grandchild relationships
  • Michelle's research on families who use the ketogenic diet to treat childhood epilepsy, and the ways they adapt to the extensive changes this makes to the ways they feed their child.

    • Michelle then shares some suggestions that I definitely agree with on a range of policy changes that could help support people to have positive relationships with food. 

    Links to some of the things Michelle mentions in the interview:

    Michelle's profile at Royal Holloway: https://pure.royalholloway.ac.uk/portal/en/persons/michelle-webster(efe2572c-e402-4f8c-94a4-20c5aec00487).html

    Webster, M., & Gabe, J. (2016). Diet and identity: being a good parent in the face of contradictions presented by the ketogenic diet. Sociology of health & illness, 38(1), 123–136. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9566.12330 available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4989473/

    Charlotte Faircloth & Ellie Lee's work at Centre for Parenting Culture Studies: https://blogs.kent.ac.uk/parentingculturestudies/resources/cpcs-books/#parenting-culture-studies 

    Oli Williams' Equity is the Answer exhibition: http://www.actwithlove.co.uk/equity.html 


    You can find me at: sarahdempster.co.uk 



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    Eating WordsBy Sarah Dempster