History of the Clean Plate Club

The clean plate club has two meanings. It started as a government initiative to concierge specific food groups for the soldiers during WWI. The dieting version of the clean plate club is an unofficial club that people join when they have cleared their plate of food. Today we will examine the history and how they can start in childhood and have lasting repercussions into adulthood. 

History Of the Clean Plate Club and World War I

It started during World War I when food rations were low on meat, wheat, and sugar. The federal government created the Food and Fuel Control Act to help conserve these food items to send to soldiers fighting in the war. President Woodrow Wilson was given the power to “regulate the distribution, export, import, purchase, and storage of food.” (Archives.gov) Due to the times, he knew that Americans would not shy away from taking part in the act and helping to conserve food to be sent to troops and civilians in Europe. This is where the Clean Plate Club comes in, and it’s starting. Numerous propaganda posters began with phrases like “Don’t waste any food, Leave a clean dinner plate, take only such food as you will eat, thousands are starving in Europe.” These kinds of propaganda are making an emotional reaction from the people viewing them. Little did they know how lasting of an effect this would have on the American people and generations to come.  For me, this would have affected my grandparents, who would have been brought up with this way of thinking. They were never allowed to throw out food because of how wasteful it was perceived and how precious those items were for the soldiers. Our grandparents grew up and had their own families, instilling this same way of thinking and food preparation and protection. 

What Does the Clean Plate Club look like In Diet Culture?

Now that World War I is over, why is the Clean Plate Club still so heavily known and used? The Clean Plate Club can be seen used when teaching children “how to eat their food and clean their plates.” Sometimes it can be used as a bargaining tool to get them to finish their plate so they can leave the table or have dessert. In my childhood, when I would stay with my grandparents during the summer, my grandmother would not allow me to leave the table unless I finished all the food on my plate. I was a smaller child; I could not eat the quantity of food she would put on my plate. There were also foods I did not like, the taste or texture she would make me up. It would get to the point that I would feel sick from the amount of food I was forced to eat or the texture of the canned spinach that would make me nauseous to the point of sickness. 

The Repercussions of the Clean Plate Club

Now, how does this affect us later on? What are the repercussions? Simply put, we will have lost our instincts of fullness and hunger cues. You may not want to eat certain foods now that you were forced to eat in your formative years. You may have noticed that you have reduced the amount of food you consume to not “waste food” or be reprimanded for not eating everything on your plate. Being inducted into the Clean Plate Club has led to years of overeating and losing touch with your hunger cues. Incorporating Intuitive Eating into your life will help give you the tools to reverse the toxic dieting mentalities you learned from the Clean Plate Club. If you have questions about Intuitive Eating, please message Robin Harris through email at robin@bodypositiveacupuncture.com to schedule a workshop. I look forward to more posts like these, which will dive into different areas of intuitive eating!