I was reading “What Defines A Person?” and it got me really thinking of how we people sometimes refer to things that might be really insignificant, or better say shallow, and yet decide to make them the standards, through which we define other people we know.

MMM lists many arguments: some people are defined by what they think, or what they say or believe, or they’re defined by their religion… and I must agree with him that these are all unreliable standards. The closest to defining the real identity of people, as he mentions, is defining people by what they do, i.e. by their actions.

There’s another thing that I’ve always believed would tell you so much about a person. It wont necessarily define that person, but it will surely help knowing a lot about them… it’s food.  Can we say a person is what he eats? I believe yes we can, in a way. Now you must know that a person’s health condition, or physical shape, or skin condition, or a person’s stress levels, mental health or even criminal tendencies… are all things that could reflect what that person eats. But what if we look at it from a different angle? what if we try to have the choice of food reflect that person and define him, is that possible? let’s see…
The choice of food tells you a lot about a person’s taste, a person who knows good quality cooking, and to whom eating is a pleasure is a person with good taste, and is definitely different from a person who eats just to feed his hunger not bothering what the hell he’d throw in his stomach.

The choice of food also tells you a lot about that person’s financial situation; if he only eats in expensive restaurants or hotels it means he can afford it, but if he always chooses cheap places, that means he’s seriously on a tight budget.

The choice of food tells you a lot about a person’s personality. If he chooses always the same kind of food that means he’s the type who likes to play it safe, or he’s the classic kind of people. But if he tries new menus every time, it means he’s adventurous and daring.

Food can also tell you about the ethnic background, because, not always, but quite often, people would cook food they’re used to eat in their own countries or family homes, even when they’re abroad.

Another interesting thing food can help you know is religion, yeah, if the person eats no pork there’s a big chance he’s either a Muslim or a Jew! Food can also give you a glimpse about a person’s own beliefs/principals; if he’s vegetarian, or vegan then he strongly believes in animal rights
You can know a bit about a person’s health condition by their choice of food. If he constantly avoids nuts, milk, flour-based dishes or any other ingredient, then he’s allergic to these ingredients. If he avoids fatty foods then he’s on diet, either for health-related reasons or just for staying fit which brings me to the fact that food would tell you a lot about a person’s education, or nutrition-awareness. An educated person who’s well-informed about food would -usually- select a healthy meal that will nourish his body; while a poorly informed person;s selection of food would end up with a meal that will just stuff his stomach and most probably pile fat in his body and hurt his health!
So I believe yes, we certainly can know a lot about a person if we know what he eats…