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Nutrition: Food & Culture

I have been delayed in sharing this post since January. There isn’t any particular reason as to why except for I have been quite busy.

As a black female nutritionist, I pride myself on being mindful when working with clients to not only understand their nutritional needs from a scientific standpoint but from a cultural standpoint as well. If I am totally honest, I believe being a part of a group that is labeled minority afforded me somewhat of a natural inclination regarding cultural awareness. When studying nutrition at the graduate level there was a lot of emphasis placed on science-based and evidence-based information for meal planning, improved patient care, and the field of nutrition as a whole. I am not saying that I disagree with the need for evidence-based practices. I support it even more so considering the rate the nutrition field is growing and expanding. What I did struggle to agree with was what seemed to be a limited demographic in a lot of the research used to base the standards and metrics for nutrition, nutrition therapy, and nutritional guidelines.

When having discussions about eating, food, and providing nutrition support, how could one only stick with research and exclude culture? People all over the world eat food. We eat the same foods, but the name of a food varies, and the preparation varies from culture to culture. It has been that way for centuries.  For example, eggplant is called la berenjena in Spanish, biadhinjan in Arabic, and nnuadewa in Twi, or garden egg across the continent of Africa. To advise a client to cook eggplant by grilling, roasting, or pan searing with one specific oil primarily without considering if there are other ways their culture prepares eggplant that it is equally or more healthy is neglectful in my opinion. Some nutrition professionals are not confronted with cultural awareness until after they have a client who is of a different culture and even then, they stick to the script. I often feel that the commonly promoted nutritious meals are generic, bland, and exclusive. The same select foods are narrowed down and promoted in constant rotation. There is only so much chicken breast or salmon with grilled veggies in olive oil one can eat.

Culture is largely responsible for the who, what, when, where, why, and how as it pertains to food.

• Who will eat certain foods can be culturally influenced.
• What someone eats and at what time they choose to eat can be culturally influenced.
• When someone chooses to eat a certain food can be culturally influenced.
• Where someone chooses to eat and where they choose to prepare their food can be culturally influenced. Cooking outside is a big deal in some cultures.
• Why someone chooses to eat can be culturally influenced; they may be fasting.
• How someone prepares the food they choose to eat can be culturally influenced. The use of certain spices for specific dishes is an example.

My approach has always been to be mindful, inclusive, and respectful of the impact culture has on what a person chooses to eat and how they chose to prepare what they eat. I try not to assume that there is only one healthy way to prepare foods or that one cultural cuisine is superior to another. I did not have to learn or be advised to be culturally competent. Though this came naturally for me, I am appreciative that more efforts are being made to expand cultural awareness in nutrition. To be honest, my insight for the need for reverence of cultural backgrounds derived from my experience as a black American and the belittling of the food (soul food) I grew up on. The further I went in my graduate program and the more I learned about nutritional value, the more I realized my ancestors got it right. They worked with what they had and that largely included scraps and the unwanted parts. The balance between proteins, starches, and leafy greens are staples in soul food. As with any food/cuisine, preparation is the game changer. Overtime preparation for some dishes and portions changed in soul food cuisine as with any cuisine. I make it a point to not shun Black American clients’ soul food roots not only because it is my own, but because it is relevant. Instead, I suggest alternative preparation strategies.

I made it a priority to acknowledge culture’s influence on a person’s food choices. Having lived abroad and experienced Middle Eastern culture and cuisine, I am aware of the aromatic spices, and I really enjoy them. I’ve also been to countries in Africa, Europe, Asia, and the Caribbean and experienced so many nutritious fruits, herbs, spices, and teas. Did you know that cashews come from a fruit? Google it. I learned of this while in Ghana. Certain foods only grow in certain regions. This determines how that food is grown and prepared, yet another way culture can have influence in food and food choices. Some food preparation practices are ancient such as the combination of beans and rice creating a complete protein. Now that I am a nutritionist, it would be irresponsible of me to ignore the vast assortment of nutritious foods, spices, herbs, meals, and preparations and their nutritional benefits.

I spoke at an elementary school’s career day in January and a student asked if it is wrong to drink milk straight from the cow and not on the shelf at the store. Someone asked do you drink milk from a  cow to which he replied yes. There was shock, outbursts, and laughter. I knew right away that he was from another country. I explained that it is not wrong. It is simply different. How milk is served and stored alters from place to place and culture to culture. One culture may live in a rural area, while another culture may live in a metropolitan area. I asked where he was from, and he said Mexico. I told him that I have been to Mexico, and I really enjoyed it. Immediately the student smiled and asked me what I liked. When his time was up, the teacher thanked me and said she learned something. Suddenly other children wanted me to answer questions about food I have tried from their home countries which included Venezuela, Brazil, Nigeria, Costa Rica, Mexico, and China. They were so happy that I knew about their country and its food. It gave them confidence to speak up. That experience showed me two things: that I love to eat (LOL) but more importantly it showed me that I am right about remembering cultural relevance/influence/impact when having discussions about eating and food. We must recognize differences and speak to them with kindness and respect.

One of my favorite types of foods is Ethiopian foods. Injera alone is a nutritional powerhouse. The complete Ethiopian meals I have had were extremely healthy and nutritious. I mentioned that to point out how telling everyone to eat the same old chicken breast, stemmed broccoli, and brown rice is not only inconsiderate but also a disservice. Look into other cultural cuisines and explore the immensely diverse healthy food/meal options out there.

Being mindful of cultural influences when discussing eating and food choices is important because:

• It reminds us to respect our differences.
• It encourages exploration and promotes nutrient diversity.
• It allows us to acknowledge that nutrition isn’t one size fit all.

Nutrition will look differently for everyone, and it can still be healthy. Do we not harp on about individualized nutrition care? Culture should be included and not just genotype and metrics. Cultural awareness is respect. You cannot talk about food and not reverence culture. For those of us in America, be mindful of the client, coworker, peer, and neighbor before you. We can speak to healthy eating as it pertains to American cuisine without speaking down on other cultural cuisines or ignoring them all together. There is a whole world of food out there.