Eating is best when it’s a social activity. Think of the meal a family enjoys in the evening when everyone’s together after work or school, or the big get-togethers over food at Spring Festival. But now, in the age of the Internet and social media, anyone with an Internet connection can enjoy a social eating . Mukbang-a South Korean phrase meaning “eating broadcast”-is an unusual food fanaticism that’s sweeping the country. This is a meal where only one person gets to eat, while many viewers watch live shows of hosts eating large quantities of food. They leave comments on the dishes the host is taking, and the host responds to them live. So why have people taken to this unusual new food trend( 趋势 )? Jeff Yang, an Asian-American cultural critic, thinks that it’s down to “the loneliness of unmarried or uncoupled South Koreans”. He believes that eating on your own can be hard in a country like South Korea, where social eating is such a long tradition. However, Mukbang gives people the feeling that they are part of something larger, it seems. Millions of people have trouble with food. Either they eat too much of it, or too little. Some say that the popularity of Mukbang helps people with these disorders. Those who always eat too much and put on weight can watch Mukbang live shows to satisfy their appetite ( 胃口 ). And those who don’t eat enough can build their appetite by watching delicious food being eaten. Even though Mukbang is a South Korean phenomenon, it’s also taken off in the US. But unlike South Koreans who sit down to enjoy noodles and kimchi ( 泡菜 ), Americans enjoy their own native dishes. This means that viewers of US Mukbang live shows will see locals stuffing themselves with hamburgers, fries and ice cream.