Raw vegetarian food and life reform: Maximilian Bircher-Benner and the Swedish health foods movements. By Motzi Eklöf. Movements for life reform, natural healing, and health foods have persisted in Sweden since the last decades of the 19th century. Stressing the importance of less alcohol and other drugs, a proper diet, and the use of natural healing methods, they have displayed conflicts concerning individual rights to decide in matters concerning one’s own body and health in relation to a medicine and state demands. Swedish movements for natural healing and health foods have developed under influence from leading figures and movements in Sweden, Germany, Switzerland, North America, and England. In 1900, the Swiss physician Maximilian Bircher-Benner (1867–1939) launched his theory of ”sunlight food”, meaning that uncooked vegetables and fruits were containing the most energy, whereas meat was radically less nourishing. His theories were contrary to contemporary medical and bourgeois culture considering meat as the optimum food, at least for real men. He became an outsider in medicine until the discovery of vitamins in the 1920s lent him some support. His clinic ”Lebendige Kraft” in Zürich received well-to-do clients from all over the world; these were treated with different physical methods, raw vegetarian food, and proper routines for day and night. Stressing the importance of raw vegetarian food, Bircher-Benner influenced vegetarians and food reformers in Sweden during the 20th century. In the 1930s, especially women with connections to the Swedish vegetarian association, founded in 1903, recommended his philosophy of food and natural healing. Menus copied from his books were used in health resorts, vegetarian pensions, and restaurants. But during the decades around World War  II, Are Waerland dominated the Swedish health-food scene, demanding adherence to his very restrictive health food programme. The post-war health movements drew on both Waerland and Bircher-Benner in their food recommendations. This article proposes factors facilitating or counteracting a broader acceptance of Bircher-Benner’s ideas in Sweden. Health resorts and strong lay traditions in the health care field have maintained a tradition of non-invasive and non-pharmacological healing methods. A strained relationship between medical doctors and lay vegetarian spokesmen have made a more serious discussion of the topic difficult. Political associations tied to natural healing in Germany during the 1930s have affected the debate and have probably also restrained a broader acceptance of these ideas. Today, scientific studies have resulted in official nourishment recommendations similar to a previously launched ”health food”.

There are several ways in which people can relate to eating or not eating animals. This essay is focussing two main strategies: Making distances and drawing borders. Today, there are several reasons for not eating meat, including environmental reasons, individual and public health reasons, ethical reasons and more. Yet, people eat more meat than ever. According to the UN, this is a major problem. In 2006 the report Livestock’s long shadow pointed out that meat consumption was a bigger problem from an environmental point of view, than global transports, including air-traffic. At the same time, western societies are becoming both more animal friendly (when it comes to companion animals) and more animal abusive (when it comes to production animals). There seems to be a lot of empathy for animals, yet people choose to hurt them, kill them and eat them. This essay, with a feministic approach, tries to reveal what mechanisms are behind this ambigous behaviour. The findings suggest that the border line between humans and animals is blurred due to several reasons. / Att äta eller inte äta djur är en fråga som det går att förhålla sig till på olika sätt. Den här uppsatsen fokuserar på två huvudstrategier: Avståndstagande och gränsdragningar. I dag finns många anledningar till att inte äta kött, till exempel miljöskäl, hälsoskäl (såväl individuella som folkhälsomässiga), etiska skäl med flera. Ändå äter jordens befolkning mer kött än någonsin. Enligt FN är det ett stort problem. Rapporten "Livestock's long shadow" som kom ut 2006, pekar ut köttkonsumtionen som ett större miljöproblem än världens samlade transporter, inklusive flygtransporter. Samtidigt, håller västerländska samhällen på att bli allt mer djurvänliga (när det handlar om sällskapsdjur) och allt mer djurfientliga (när det handlar om så kallade produktionsdjur). Det finns uppenbarligen mycket empati för djuren, ändå väljer människor att göra dem illa,  döda dem och äta dem. Den här uppsatsen försöker ur ett feministiskt perspektiv undersöka de mekanismer som ligger bakom detta ambivalenta beteende. Resultatet tyder på att gränsen mellan människa och djur är en kulturell konstruktion som håller på att suddas ut, av flera skäl.

Bakgrund Maten som konsumeras i världen är en kraftigt bidragande faktor till klimatförändringarna. Kost baserad på mer frukt, grönsaker och mindre rött kött skulle  gynna både miljö och hälsa. Studier visar att barn och ungdomar äter mer kött och charkprodukter än vad som rekommenderas, samtidig äter knappt hälften av ungdomarna den rekommenderade mängden frukt och grönt. Syfte Studiens syfte var att kartlägga niondeklassares inställning till kött och vegetarisk kost samt vilka påverkansfaktorer som låg bakom deras val av livsmedel. Metod Undersökning gjordes med en kvantitativ enkät gjord i Google Forms. Enkäten gick digitalt ut till elever i årskurs 9 på två olika skolor i mellersta Sverige under vårterminen 2021. Data analyserades i Excel och signifikanstest gjordes genom Chi-2 med signifikansnivå p<0,05. Jämförelser gjordes utifrån kön samt respondenternas och deras föräldrars födelseland. Resultat I studien deltog 150 elever. Studien visade att de mest avgörande aspekterna rörande valet av mat var smaken på maten och påverkan från föräldrar. Vegetariska måltider var mer vanligt förekommande i de familjer där minst en förälder var född utanför Europa. Att välja vegetarisk mat av miljöskäl var inte särskilt viktigt. Närmare hälften av respondenterna hade en positiv inställning till att byta ut kött mot vegetariska proteinalternativ. Slutsats Studien visade att smaken var av betydelse vid matvalet samt ett hinder för eleverna att äta vegetariska proteinalternativ. Eleverna måste få en mer positiv smakupplevelse av vegetarisk mat. HK-lärare har en viktig roll att låta eleverna utforska detta område. En mer vegetarisk kost skulle främja elevernas hälsa samt bidra till en hållbar utveckling. / Background The food consumed worldwide is an important contributing factor to climate deterioration. A more plant-based diet and less meat, would benefit both environment and health. Studies show that children and adolescents eat more meat and charcuterie products than recommended, and at the same time barely half of the adolescents eat the recommended amount of fruit and vegetables.  Objective The purpose of the study was to map year 9 students’ attitudes towards meat and vegetarian diets, as well as the influencing factors behind their choice of food.  Method Data was collected via a quantitative survey, created in Google Forms. The survey, sent digitally during the spring term of 2021, to students at two different schools in central Sweden. Data was analysed in Excel and significance test performed through Chi-2, with a significance level of p<0.05. Comparisons were made based on gender, also upon respondents and their parents’ country of birth.  Results 150 students participated in the study. The study showed that the most crucial aspects regarding the choice of food, were the taste of the food, and the influence of parents. Vegetarian meals were more common in those families where at least one parent was born outside Europe. Choosing vegetarian food for environmental reasons was not especially important. Almost half of the respondents displayed a positive attitude in regards to opting for a plant-based protein alternative instead of meat. Conclusion The study showed that taste was of importance in regards to choice of food, and at the same time, an obstacle for students to eat vegetarian protein alternatives. The students need a more positive taste experience of vegetarian food. Home and Consumer Studies teachers, play an important role in allowing students to explore this area. A diet containing more plant-based food would benefit the student’s health, and additionally contribute towards sustainable development.