Steve Jobs's Ascetic Food Philosophy
Steve Jobs’s relationship with food was famously peculiar and reflected his broader life philosophy of minimalism, asceticism, and perfectionism. From his youth, Jobs viewed food not just as sustenance, but as a tool for purification and sensory enhancement. This belief led to decades of extreme dietary experiments, documented in his authorized biography. Jobs believed that restraint and intense focus on simple, natural foods would cleanse his body and sharpen his mind, leading to heightened experiences.
Early Influences on his Diet
Jobs’s unconventional eating habits began during his youth and college years, shaped by the counterculture movements of the 1970s and influential books.
- Diet for a Small Planet: A vegetarian manifesto by Frances Moore Lappé, this book was a key influence on Jobs during his time at Reed College, cementing his lifelong aversion to meat.
- Mucusless Diet Healing System: Authored by Arnold Ehret, this book further radicalized Jobs's thinking on food. Ehret's theory posited that certain foods create harmful mucus in the body, which could be eliminated through fasting and a diet of fruits and starchless vegetables. This became a core belief for Jobs, justifying his restrictive and often obsessive eating patterns.
Periods of Fasting and Fruitarianism
Throughout his life, Jobs went through phases of extreme dietary restriction, from extended fasts to periods of eating only one or two foods for weeks at a time.
The Fruitarian Phase
One of the most notable phases was his fruitarian diet, during which he ate almost exclusively fruits, nuts, seeds, and vegetables. This period is famously linked to the naming of his company, Apple. While on a fruit-only diet, he visited an apple orchard and decided the name was 'fun, spirited, and not intimidating'. His fruitarian obsession was so intense that at one point, he consumed so many carrots that his skin took on an orange hue. Jobs also developed the flawed theory that his pure diet negated the need for deodorant and regular showering, much to the dismay of his colleagues.
The Practice of Fasting
Jobs also regularly engaged in prolonged fasts, sometimes lasting for up to a week. He believed fasting could induce euphoria and heighten his senses, a feeling likely caused by ketosis, a metabolic state the body enters when deprived of carbohydrates. He would break these fasts with simple, leafy vegetables and water. This practice was another manifestation of his ascetic desire to purify his body and mind.
Jobs's Diet in his Later Years and Health Crisis
As his health declined, Jobs's dietary control became even more pronounced and difficult for his family. After his pancreatic cancer diagnosis in 2003, he initially turned to diet to cure himself, following a strict vegan diet and drinking large amounts of juices and carrots, against his doctors' advice. He would later express regret for this delay in seeking conventional treatment.
Jobs's pickiness intensified in his final years. His personal chef would prepare a variety of healthy dishes, which he would often dismiss as inedible after only a small taste. His wife, Laurene Powell, even consulted with eating disorder specialists, but Jobs refused help. His food choices reflected his physical and psychological struggles, oscillating between intense cravings for specific foods, like unagi sushi or crab salad, and a near-total rejection of solid food.
Quote Comparison: Food as Medicine vs. Stay Hungry
It is important to differentiate between two of the most well-known quotes associated with Jobs, as one is a general life philosophy while the other is a dietary maxim often attributed to him.
| Quote | Context and Meaning | Dietary Connection | Authenticity |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish." | From his famous 2005 Stanford commencement speech, encouraging a mindset of intellectual curiosity and relentless ambition. | Metaphorical Hunger: Not literal hunger, but a drive for more knowledge and experience. | Widely known and documented from a public speech. |
| "Eat your food as your medicine..." | Often attributed to Jobs in his later years, reminding people of the importance of a healthy diet. | Literal and Philosophic: Encourages a diet of nutritious, natural foods to prevent illness. | Debated: The quote's precise origin is uncertain, but it aligns with Jobs's overall food philosophy. |
A Complex Legacy of Food and Philosophy
Steve Jobs's food habits were an extension of his intense, perfectionist, and minimalist personality. They started as a quest for purity and a heightened state of mind but ultimately became a point of contention and a source of personal struggle during his illness. While his dietary experimentation provided interesting anecdotes, such as the inspiration for the Apple name, it also highlighted a complex and sometimes unhealthy relationship with food. His story serves as a reminder that even the most brilliant minds can have unorthodox beliefs, particularly when it comes to personal wellness.
Conclusion: More Than Just Food
Ultimately, what Steve Jobs said and believed about food was not simple. His dietary journey was a lifelong experiment rooted in a desire for control, purity, and sensory focus. His philosophies, influenced by books on asceticism and vegetarianism, led him down a path of extreme diets and fasting. His food choices became a powerful, and at times regrettable, reflection of his broader life philosophy, revealing a complicated and intense individual who pursued perfection in all aspects of his existence, even his meals. While we should not necessarily emulate his extreme dietary regimen, his story offers a fascinating case study into the intersection of personal beliefs and health choices.
Steve Jobs's Extreme Dietary Habits
- Veganism and Fruitarianism: Embraced strict vegan and fruitarian diets, believing they would purify his body.
- Monotonous Eating: Often ate a single food, like apples or carrots, for weeks on end, followed by abruptly stopping.
- Fasting for Euphoria: Regularly engaged in prolonged fasts, believing they induced feelings of clarity and ecstasy.
- Flawed Body Odor Theory: Held a persistent, incorrect belief that his vegan diet eliminated body odor, making deodorant and showers unnecessary.
- Pickiness and Control: Became a notoriously picky eater, even spitting out food with undesirable ingredients like butter.
- Regret and Denial: Refused conventional cancer treatment early on in favor of dietary solutions, a decision he later regretted.
