Configuring users of cholesterol lowering foods: A review of biomedical discourse

Kate Weiner

Social Science & Medicine, 2010, vol. 71, issue 9, 1541-1547

Abstract: This paper explores how users of foods containing phytosterols are 'configured' within biomedical research and writing on these substances. A growing range of such foods have been launched and marketed on the basis that they actively lower cholesterol. They are among the most prominent examples of a set of foods designated as 'functional foods'. The paper is based on an analysis of biomedical journal articles which address the use of phytosterols as a cholesterol lowering agent in humans. These include both original research papers and commentaries such as review articles, letters, editorials, news items and professional guidelines. My analysis suggests that users are constituted variously as autonomous, self-motivated consumers, patients and publics needing advice, people resistant to pill use, and practitioners looking for something to offer their patients. I characterise the imagined uses of the products as healthy/holistic, lazy/busy/contemporary, and incompetent use. These varying portrayals of users and their use of these food products entail different ways of understanding health identities and different allocations of responsibilities between the technology, user and health care professionals. I conclude that, while experts and regulators may attempt to configure 'correct' uses of these products, relatively little is known about the rationales and practices of actual users.

Keywords: Cholesterol; Functional; food; Phytosterol; Health; identity; Biomedical; discourse; Configuring; users; Health; consumption; Review (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2010
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277-9536(10)00585-X
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:socmed:v:71:y:2010:i:9:p:1541-1547

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/supportfaq.cws_home/regional
http://www.elsevier. ... _01_ooc_1&version=01

Access Statistics for this article

Social Science & Medicine is currently edited by Ichiro (I.) Kawachi and S.V. (S.V.) Subramanian

More articles in Social Science & Medicine from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().