Nowadays, I would say no. If anything, it's something to be thankful for.
It's been said already that the original definition of gluttony rarely applies these days, at least in most developed countries. Where eating more prevented someone else from eating.
I do believe that "gluttony" continues to exist in a different forms, primarily in the form of severely increasing wealth and income inequality, approaching increasingly unsustainable levels, but this is off-topic and a subject for another time and place.
A new definition of gluttony exists, but it has been twisted. There's a perception of a lack of self control, but I don't believe that's common. But there's still a perception from some that some folks are larger because they lack self control when it comes to eating, are lazy, or other actually negative traits. But many attitudes persist even when facts don't support them.
The rise of the size acceptance movement, as well as the fact that average weights, BMI, and waistlines continue to expand is establishing a new normal and paradigm shift. However, old attitudes persist and slow to go away. The weight loss industry, and it's an actual industry (a frankly criminal industry at that) is probably in large part to blame for that. The fashion industry to a smaller degree as well, but it can and is adapting. They can simply use larger models while designing and manufacture larger clothing.
It's true there's many folks out there who are starving or food insecure, while there's also enormous food waste, but this is the result of structural problems, such as distribution networks and societal factors that have nothing to do with a more than sufficient food supply. Contributing factors to this:
- Food spoilage in transit that doesn't sufficiently protect the food, especially produce.
- Welfare recipients who don't have regular access to a motor vehicle or sufficiently decent public transit, and live in food deserts. So they're required to eat convenience store food, which is a poorer value for the food stamp or WIC program dollar.
- A few supermarket general managers who dump bleach or other toxic chemicals into dumpsters to prevent the homeless from dumpster diving for food waste, or ideally.. from the GM's point of view, the homeless man will eat it and die a horrible death. Fortunately this seems to be rare, as I will boycott any supermarket that I'm aware that does this.
If anything, it's those who eat large quantities of produce that are *not* locally grown, food that is not even close to fattening that are the new gluttons as they contribute much more to food waste.
In short, you may as well eat as much as you can. There's no reason to feel bad.
4 years