My mom – who is not exactly an enthusiastic fish eater, but who is an avid bargain hunter – noticed several species of seafood on sale for $7.99/lb at our local grocery store earlier this week. Flash forward to dinner last night and she’s going back for seconds of Alaskan cod tacos with chipotle cream.

It brings me embarrassing amounts of pleasure to see a loved one eating wholesome foods and liking it. What keeps people from buying and eating the nutrient-rich foods they know darned well they should is complex. I’ve always put so much emphasis on taste (hence the crowd-pleasingshrimp-stuffed jalapeos> oneraw shrimp+ lightcream cheese +diced redonion per bacon-wrapped jalapeo), but sometimes it’s other factors like price and marketingthat stand in the way.

I recently heard a researcher present on overcoming barriers to eating right and he made the point that if all Americans cared about is taste, why do webuy so muchbottled water? Most would agree it tastes just like filtered water from the tap. Convenience, marketing, habit…all these things play a role. Kind of a sticky pickle. But public health efforts can work. Look at smoking rates over the decades – they’re almost half what they were in the Don Draper days.