Insects Eating People Source Americans Considered Eat Food

In many cultures, insects are an important source of "protein" (a substance found in foods that helps one build muscle), but "entomophagy" (the practice of eating insects) is "uncommon" (rare) and almost "nonexistent" (with none of something) in the United States. In fact, many Americans have a strong "aversion" (feelings of disgust) to the idea of eating insects. Insects are considered dirty and "creepy crawly" (moving in unpleasant ways), and are not supposed to be in homes, much less on our plates.

Young children, mostly boys, sometimes challenge each other to eat worms or insects, but they aren't considered a type of food and most Americans have never tasted an insect. However, some "reality shows" (television shows that show the behavior of normal people, not actors) "play on" (take advantage) of Americans' aversion to eating insects.

For example, Fear Factor was a reality "game show" (a show where people try to win something) where "contestants" (the people playing the game) had to do things that they were very afraid of or that they thought were disgusting. Some of the "challenges" (difficult things people had to do) were to eat insects, often insects that were still alive.

Despite Americans' aversion to eating insects, many experts have begun "advocating" (saying that something is good and encouraging others to do it) on behalf of entomophagy. They believe that insects are the world's most "abundant" (with a lot of something) and inexpensive source of protein, and that insects could be the solution to the world's "hunger problems" (problems related to people not having enough nutritious food to eat).