Why Do We Choose What’s Bad for Us?
In Nairobi, like many parts of the world, you’ll often see supermarket shelves cleared of white bread while brown bread remains untouched. Broiler chicken flies off the counter while indigenous chicken—though richer in nutrients—sits in the freezer. When it comes to juice, a vibrant pack of processed nectar often wins over freshly squeezed mango juice. But this behavior is not limited to food alone. Across morality, relationships, and social choices, why do people choose what’s bad for them even when the better option is right before them?
The answer lies deeper than taste, preference, or ignorance. It is rooted in psychology, societal programming, convenience, and even biblical precedent. From Nairobi’s food choices to global moral decisions, this article explores the hidden forces behind our attraction to lesser value options—despite knowing better.
The Seduction of the Superficial: When Appearances Trump Substance
In many Nairobi households, white bread is a daily staple despite its low fiber and high glycemic index. Brown bread, often richer in whole grains and nutrients, gets snubbed. The reason? White bread looks softer, tastes sweeter, and feels more familiar. This pattern is echoed in the choice between broiler and indigenous chicken, or even in relationships—where slay queens often overshadow loyal wives in attention and allure.
This inclination is not mere habit. It is an appeal to the senses over substance. Much of human decision-making is driven by immediate gratification. According to behavioral science, humans are wired to prioritize short-term pleasure over long-term benefit, a tendency known as temporal discounting.
Nairobi nutritionist Dr. Faith Muthoni notes, “We often reach for what satisfies us instantly. Healthy food and moral living demand discipline, but processed food and indulgence offer an instant ‘reward.’ That’s the trap.”
Biblical Echoes: Choosing Barabbas Over Jesus
The dilemma is ancient. When Pilate presented Jesus and Barabbas to the crowd in Jerusalem, asking whom to release, they chose Barabbas—a known criminal—over an innocent man. Why? Because Jesus represented hard truths, a call to righteousness, and an end to complacency. Barabbas, though a rebel, was familiar and less demanding of moral transformation.
The crowd’s choice reveals a disturbing truth: people often reject what is right when it challenges comfort or provokes inner change.
This same principle manifests today when someone chooses gossip over silence, infidelity over fidelity, or corruption over integrity. The good option is rarely the easier one.
Read Also: The Other Side of Life: A Sobering Reflection on the Journey from Birth to 100 Years
The Psychology of Bad Choices: Why We Fall for Less
So why do people choose what’s bad for them, even when they know better? Several reasons explain this paradox:
- Ease and Accessibility
In Nairobi’s estates, a packet of flavored juice is cheaper and more accessible than natural fruit juice. Broiler chicken cooks faster and is readily available. Doing the wrong thing—like cheating, stealing, or lying—is often easier than the right, more demanding alternative. - Cultural Normalization
Society glorifies fast lifestyles, flashy appearances, and superficial success. The “slay culture” is marketed as desirable. Processed foods are associated with modern living, while natural options are sometimes viewed as backward or traditional. - Addiction to Sensory Pleasure
Sugars, oils, fats, and emotional thrills activate the brain’s reward system. Much like how white bread provides a sweet spike, morally loose behavior offers temporary emotional highs—even if consequences are damaging in the long run. - Fear of Missing Out (FOMO)
Many people don’t want to be “left behind” socially or trend-wise. Choosing what seems popular—even if harmful—is often driven by peer pressure or social mimicry.
Moral Choices: When Wrong Seems More Fun
Let’s leave food aside and zoom into the moral terrain. Why is it easier to gossip than speak truth? Why do many Nairobi men leave loving wives for short-lived affairs? Why are people drawn to content that glamorizes chaos rather than peace?
It’s not that people don’t value what’s right—it’s that what’s wrong is packaged in a way that’s more enticing. This packaging includes:
- Emotional highs: Forbidden things stir adrenaline.
- Low commitment: Wrong decisions rarely require long-term effort.
- Groupthink: “Everyone is doing it” becomes a license to indulge.
Philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche once remarked, “The most perfidious way of harming a cause consists of defending it deliberately with faulty arguments.” In today’s culture, moral and wholesome options are often painted as boring, strict, or “old-school,” driving more people to rebel—not out of logic, but emotion.
Nairobi as a Case Study: Urbanization and the Decline of Value
Kenya’s capital Nairobi is a mirror of modern societal temptation. From food preferences to relationship choices, urban life accelerates the loss of depth in favor of convenience. Natural foods are overlooked in favor of processed ones. Long-term partners are traded for fleeting flings. Morality is often mocked as being “too much.”
Urban culture prizes what looks good over what is good. This has led to health issues, broken homes, and a general fatigue in emotional well-being. While development is good, without grounded values, we may continue to pick Barabbas over Jesus in every area of life.
Can This Be Changed?
Yes. But it requires intentionality. Public health campaigns in Nairobi have begun promoting organic food and exercise. Churches and community leaders continue preaching morality and value-based living. Schools are reintroducing character education.
To reverse this trend:
- Teach the long-term consequences of poor choices.
- Rebrand good values to appear desirable, not dull.
- Create environments where the right choice is easier and more rewarding.
The Battle Between Good and Easy
From food to faith, from relationships to ethics, we’re often caught in a quiet war between what is right and what is easy. And too often, we choose what is bad for us—not because it’s better, but because it’s easier, flashier, or more immediately gratifying.
But as history shows—from the crowd choosing Barabbas to today’s diet and dating dilemmas—what seems like a good choice today can haunt us tomorrow.
So, why do people choose what’s bad for them? Because doing right takes courage, sacrifice, and self-control. Yet, it is only by choosing right—consistently and intentionally—that we reclaim our health, morality, and collective future.
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