Food and pleasure are two notions that, in nature, seem inescapable. Human beings have subsistence needs, and among the most basic are obviously eating, breathing, resting, sex, affection, physical safety, feeling that we belong to something, and many other instances.
Greek philosophers already recognized food as one of the main pleasures of the flesh, which some believed should be tempered, while others, like the hedonists, thought should be satisfied. For the Epicureans, eating was considered a natural and necessary desire. Contrary to popular belief, the Epicureans considered sex a natural but unnecessary desire. In the conception of pleasure, since that era, eating and sex have been identified as activities that provide satisfaction.
Around pleasure, certain myths have been constructed about aphrodisiac foods, which owe their name to Aphrodite, goddess of fertility, love, sex, and beauty. Through historical, psychological, social, and even experimental studies, we realize that the construction of these foods is based more on their resemblance in form than on their actual properties. For example, oysters, which resemble female genitalia, have been associated with these meanings. It is curious to note that, in Dutch Golden Age paintings, oysters were depicted in still lifes as signs of fertility and therefore of wealth and prosperity, which had nothing to do with sexual pleasure but did relate to sexual organs. Ultimately, the meanings attributed to foods are culturally shaped, and today it is known that the brain is the most powerful sexual organ.
With the development of science and research into the substances contained in foods, we find that, for example, the theobromine present in chocolate is a stimulant of the nervous system, but less effective than caffeine. Other studies have identified that, at the brain level, some experiences involving food activate the pleasure centers that are also activated during orgasm. This is why it is not an exaggeration when someone says they have a sensory orgasm when tasting a food. However, it has been found that this does not depend solely on flavor but on the shared experience.
Unlike sex, the experience of sharing a meal can easily be done among a group of people without violating a social norm. Food is a powerful binding agent: from breastfeeding to family meals, nothing expresses belonging more than eating with a group of people. Relationships of friendship, love, and kinship are largely established in the presence of food. Think about it: occasions to socialize with friends or relatives almost always involve some type of food or drink. This is due to many factors: food is identity, sharing a meal indicates group affiliation, which may be fleeting or not. Imagine a group of cavemen. At that time, identifying what was edible from what was not was done by trial and error. At best, indigestion, and at worst, poisoning was at stake. Sharing this risk with a group of people undoubtedly mitigated that risk.
The pleasure of eating, like that of love, is not necessarily deposited only in the food itself or in the object of our affection. It is the complete experience, the preamble, and all the emotional connections with a food that take us back to an affectionate moment in our lives—whether maternal, fraternal, or romantic—that truly gratifies. On this day, let us return to being Epicureans, knowing how to enjoy—without excess or deprivation—the pleasures of food and love in any of their forms.
— This article was originally published in Spanish by Liliana Martínez Lomelí. Translation generated with AI from the original text.