What’s in Your Seasonings Cabinet?
Are we eating for pleasure or for nutrition in the Black Community?
The way we look at food in America can be highly controversial especially when you look at minority and impoverished communities. POC are at a disadvantage when it comes to the education of and access to high quality, nutritious foods, and a lack of preventative healthcare. What’s also a detriment is the lack of education regarding nutrition and its relations to health in those communities. There is a vast outcry of nutritional information available but not enough geared to African American Communities.
Growing up in a typical black home, I was accustomed to eating soul food and highly processed foods. It’s so darn good! However, this style of eating may also be contributing to the disease in our black community. But wait I’m not telling you to stop eating it; its literally food for the soul, its comfort food; nor am I telling you to avoid all processed foods. (Some are okay. Everything in moderation though.) After reading this weeks’ journal, you will walk away more aware of the history of soul food, how it may contribute to disease, and how I it can not just nourish the soul but also our beautiful body. We’ll also get into how to chose ‘better’ processed foods a little bit.
During enslavement of Africans in America, for our nourishment we were fed the scraps and leftovers discarded by slave owners - Meat leftover (pigtails, pig intestines, chicken feet, etc) , lard, cornmeal, greens, etc.; They provided meals which were high in fats, salt, and starch, although it provided the calories to keep them working but not the essential nutrients to prevent ailments and disease. I dare not and shall not fault our ancestors for their meals; their meals were birth out of survival. However, this style of cooking has been passed down for generations without much thought given to the ingredients we use. Common in the African American household seasoning pantry, you will find, Seasoning Salt (possibly Lawrys), smoked paprika, onions powder, garlic powder, black pepper, etc. (Leave a comment of your favorite seasonings in your pantry.) Seasoning salt, all though it is freaking flavourful on average has 320mg (13% of the daily value) in one serving which is 1/4 teaspoon, and any black person knows that we use a whole heck more than a quarter teaspoon.
Listen up my Queens and Kings, using more than the recommended serving of seasoning salt can add a whole lot of salt to your diet; exacerbating high blood pressure and heart disease, edema (fluid build-up, swelling), and dehydration. Another thing about the spices in our cabinets are the anti-caking agents, though they have been tested by the FDA prior to landing in our cabinets, there is not much information on the amount of trace minerals we could be ingesting, and its effects to our health. Read more about anti-caking agents here http://www.organicspices.com/blog/2014/1/6/what-are-anti-caking-agents. The sole purpose of anti-caking agents is to keep ingredients from clumping together after being packaged. I believe the best way is without all of the additivities, natural. I won’t tell you what brand to purchase but I will tell you to ALWAYS READ THE LABELS AND THE INGREDIENTS.
TIP: If you want to stay away from additives try to use fresh spices and herbs. Can’t find them in-store? Grow a mini herb garden. If you have a community garden in your neighborhood, advocate for herbs that are common to your cooking or order online from an ethical organic source. When there is a will to eat fresh and healthy, there is a way. In a black home, when it comes to cooking with fats; we love them. They are sweet, they add richness, flavor, and moisture; but we must be cognizant of the types of and the amount of fats we use in our meals. You have probably heard the term fats and bad fats; the good fats are the unsaturated (mono and polyunsaturated) fats and the bad fats are trans fats. Saturated fats are not bad but they are not good when consumed in larger quantities. So remember, use fats sparingly when cooking and when purchasing processed foods be sure to read the labels and steer clear of and/or limit the consumption of trans fats.
To learn more about fats, visit
https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat/fats-and-cholesterol/
In the majority of black, low-income communities, it is not uncommon for community members, especially the younger generations, to rely on convenience stores, liquor stores, fast-food chains, and gas stations for snacks and meals. These meals and snacks are high in calories, fats, sugar, and salt and low in nutrients; And a diet low in essential macro and micronutrients are key to creating a body susceptible to disease. A healthy holistic lifestyle is not commonly discussed in the African-American community and it needs to change. Black Healthy Lives Matters! If we want to see a change in our communities and support longevity free of disease and ailments, our nutrition is key to supporting a healthy mind, body, and soul.
