ch 11 culture/religion influences

Cultural and Religious Influences on Food and Nutrition

Food and nutrition on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

rank on the same level as air as basic necessities of life

How a person chooses to satisfy nutritional requirements is influenced and is reflected by many variables

• culture

• socioeconomic status

• personal factors

• religion

American Cuisine

• Adapted and adopted from cuisines brought to the US by immigrants

• Cross-cultural food creations

• Driven by expediency and ease

• Convenience foods and restaurant-sourced meals

• the nutritional quality of food away from home (FAFH) is lower than that of food consumed at home

American Cuisine - Convenience foods

• any product that saves time in food preparation

  • Bagged fresh salad mixes to frozen packaged complete meals

• range from convenient ingredients used to make home-cooked meals to complete, ready-to-heat meals

• not all are bad but many tend to be high in sodium

• More prepared food may be more expensive

how food is defined by culture

• What is edible

  • Eyeballs might taste great but if you tell someone what they are eating they might think it is gross

• Role of food

• How food is prepared and seasoned

• Symbolic use of food

• When and how food is eaten

  • Certain foods might only be eaten during certain times of the year or day

food is defined by culture - role of foods

• Not just nutrition but celebration, healing, religious rituals

• Major food categories: core foods, secondary foods, and occasional foods

  • core foods

    • a significant source of calories and are regularly included in the diet, usually on a daily basis

    • typically complex carbs which are inexpensive, easy to prepare, readily available

      • ex: rice, wheat, potatoes

  • secondary foods

    • widely consumed but not on a daily basis

    • Vary with availability

    • ex: veggies, nuts, legumes, fish/meat

  • occasional/peripheral foods

    • eaten sporadically

    • ex: special occasions, not readily available, expensive, or not well tolerated

Symbolic use of foods

• To express love

• To reward or punish

• To display piety

• To express moral sentiments

• To demonstrate belongingness to a group

• To proclaim the separateness of a group

When and how food is eaten

• Some cultures don’t allow snacking

• some cultures eat smaller, more frequent meals

• some cultures may participate in fasting

• All cultures eat at least once a day

• Mealtimes vary according to culture

• In the US, bad manners in eating may be associated with animal behavior

Dietary acculturation

• Happens when the eating habits of immigrants adapt to resemble those of the host country

• In the US, acculturation is linked to increased risk of chronic disease and obesity

  • Increases the prevalence of unhealthy eating practices

• food habits are one of the last behaviors people change through acculturation

African Americans - Traditional food practices

• “Soul food”

  • Tends to be high in fat, cholesterol, and sodium

  • Corn and corn products (grits, cornmeal) are the primary grain

  • Meats are often breaded and fried

  • We see more traditional intake of this in the south

  • may be reserved for special occasions and holidays

  • a symbol of African American identity and African heritage

African Americans - Health Beliefs

• a blend of traditional African concepts as well as those encountered through early contact with both Native Americans and Whites

• food habits now more closely reflect socioeconomic status, geographic location, work schedule - with soul food being reserved for special occasions

• Home remedies and natural therapies may be frequently used

African Americans - Nutrition-related health problems

• this group scores just slightly below the national population

• Among the highest rates of morbidity and mortality from diet-related diseases (HTN, heart disease, and stroke)

• Have a significantly higher likelihood of developing diabetes

• The death rate is generally higher than White people for heart diseases, stroke, cancer, asthma, influenza and pneumonia, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, and homicide

Mexican Americans - Traditional food practices

• generally a low-fat, high-fiber diet rich in complex carbohydrates and vegetable proteins

• Pork, goat, and poultry are the most used animal proteins

• Lactose intolerance is common

  • dairy is not a major component of diet → some or all of lactase enzymes are lost → dairy cant be broken down

Mexican Americans - Health Beliefs

• a blend of European folk medicine introduced from Spain and Native American rituals

• Health is viewed as a gift from God

• Illness is inevitable

• Certain foods may be considered “cold” or “hot” for healing purposes

Mexican Americans - Nutrition-related health problems

• has the highest Healthy Eating Index (HEI) scores of all ethnic groups

• Acculturation generally decreases the quality of the diet

  • A high prevalence of overweight/obesity, type 2 diabetes, asthma, COPD, HIV/AIDS, suicide, and liver disease

Asian Americans - Traditional food practices

• Emphasis on rice and vegetables with relatively little meat

• Cooking techniques that include meticulous attention to preparing ingredients before cooking

• Foundation of the traditional diet are grains: rice and wheat

• Most food is cooked - the exception is fresh fruit but it’s eaten infrequently

• Food is low in fat and dairy products

• Sodium and complex carb intake is generally assumed to be high

• lactose intolerance is common

Asian Americans - Health Beliefs

• health and illness are related to the balance between yin and yang forces in the body

• Diseases caused by yin forces are treated with yang foods, and diseases caused by yang forces are treated with yin foods

  • Excess yang can cause stress, agitation, inflammation, or overheating

  • Excess yin can cause lethargy, coldness, passivity, or a feeling of being stuck

• The hot–cold theory of foods and illness also exists in Puerto Rico and Mexico

Asian Americans - Nutrition-related health problems

• women have the highest life expectancy

• Prevalence of overweight and obesity are low

• have a higher risk of hypertension and CVD than whites

• have a high prevalence of COPD, hep B, HIV/AIDS, smoking, tuberculosis, and liver disease

Roman Catholics dietary practices

• Dont eat meat on Ash Wednesday or Fridays in Lent

• Avoid food and beverages 1 hour before communion

• Observe several fast days during the year

Eastern Orthodox Christians dietary practices

Observe numerous feast and fast days throughout the year

Mormons (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints) dietary practices

• Does not consume caffeine, alcohol, tea, or tobacco

• Limit meats; eat mostly grains

• Some fast 1 day per month

Seventh-Day Adventists dietary practices

• Lacto-ovo vegetarians

• Overeating is avoided

• Coffee, tea, and alcohol are prohibited

• 5-6 hours between meals without snacking

Christianity includes which branches?

• Roman Catholicism

• Eastern Orthodox Christianity

• Protestantism

  • Mormons (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints)

  • Seventh-Day Adventists

3 main Jewish denominations

Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform

Orthodox Jews

• eat Kosher foods

• adhere strictly to dietary laws

Kosher

• preferences are related to types of food and when they are consumed

• “Clean” vs. “Unclean” foods

  • Pork is considered unclean

• food animals must be slaughtered a certain way

• Dairy and meats

  • cant be consumed together nor within a few hours of each other

  • cannot be on the same plates

  • cannot be prepared at the same time, nor the same equipment, or at the same place

Reform Jews

follow the moral law but may selectively follow other laws

Conservative Jews

fall between the other two groups (orthodox and reform) in their beliefs and adherence to the laws

Islam

• Muslims eat as a matter of faith and for good health

• Health and food are considered acts of worship for which Allah must be thanked

• Halal: ____ dietary laws

• Haram: Foods that are prohibited

• similarities with kosher guidelines, but they tend to be much more strict than kosher

Halal

Islamic dietary laws

Haram

Islamic foods that are prohibited

Hinduism

• Eating meat is not explicitly prohibited, but many are vegetarian because they adhere to the concept of ahimsa

• dairy considered to enhance spiritual purity

• health beliefs and dietary practices stem from the idea of living in harmony with nature

• Ahimsa: nonviolence as applied to foods (and life as a whole)

• Another influential concept is that of purity

• avoid all foods that are believed to inhibit physical and spiritual development

Ahimsa in Hinduism

nonviolence as applied to foods (and life as a whole)

Buddhism

• Limited meats, more grains and veggies

• Life revolves around nature with its two opposing energy systems of yin and yang

• Illnesses may result from an imbalance of yin and yang

• Most believe in the concept of ahimsa, so many are lacto-ovo vegetarians

• Code of morality prohibits killing or harming living things

• Dietary practices vary widely depending on the sect, region, and country

lacto-ovo vegetarian

consumes all plant-based foods, as well as dairy products (milk, cheese, yogurt) and eggs