The African Americans had a traditional cuisine known as soul food or southern food. The African Americans carried soul food to North America and the other parts of America as they left the south between the early and mid-20th centuries. The African Americans moved in the significant migration period. Soul food range from some simple food such as chicken, rice, collard greens, and beans to candied yams, ham hocks, cheese, peach cobbler, macaroni, and cornbread. Soul food is part of the black food culture. Black food culture brings a sense of family, home, and togetherness.
Having a proper and balanced diet meal makes the human body remain strong and stay healthy. We should embrace a culture of choosing the appropriate diet that builds our bodies, gives us strength, and also help to prevent diseases. We are going to learn about the fundamentals of soul foods and their health effects. We shall also learn the tricks of boosting soul food at domyhomework123.com/math.
What are the health effects of soul food?
The Southern food associated with the famous soul food contains sweetened beverages, eggs, added fat, organ meats, processed meat, and fried food. The soul food eating pattern is associated with cancer, mental decline, stroke, and kidney disease. According to research by CDC, black Americans at the age of 35-54 have a considerable likelihood of suffering from high blood pressure, and African Americans at the age of 18-29 may die at a higher rate than white Americans. Apart from economic and social disparities playing a significant role in causing the diseases, diet also matters.
However, not all soul foods are unhealthy to human health, some such as green vegetables and dishes rich in nutrients are among soul foods.
How to maintain food culture as you promote your health
Soul food comprises several traditions, practices and legacies passed down from one generation to another. We should not abandon our rich heritage when we create a portion of healthy soul food. We need to adjust our cooking methods and recipes to boost the nutrients in our diet and maintain our food’s cultural traditions, richness, and flavor.
Select plant-based diets
Traditional African foods include a plant-based variety of diets such as watermelon, black-eyed peas, leafy greens, and okra. The meat was eaten seasonally and in small quantities. More plant-based foods are healthy and help moderate our body weight and decrease the risks of diseases. People who eat cruciferous and leafy green vegetables such as turnip greens, cabbage, kale, and collard greens have a reduced heart disease rate.
Techniques of increasing plant food intake
Make sure your plate contains half of the non-starchy vegetables
Replace meat with legumes
Eat diverse components of meals
Eat some colorful diet which should be plant-based
Eat more whole grains
The USDA recommends people eat more whole grains for up to half of their meals. Entire grains include endosperm, bran, and germ. Whole grains play an important role in preventing heart diseases, stomach cancer, diabetes, weight management, and gut health. Some foods such as cheese, rice dishes, and cornbread are manufactured from whole grains.
Tips of enjoying whole grains
Use sorghum, brown rice, fonio, or millet instead of white rice.
Select packaged foods whereby the ingredient contains whole grains as first or second in the list.
Seasons with herbs, spices, and veggies
Some soul foods contain a large amount of sodium like processed meat; they also use Cajun, garlic salt, and seasoned salt. Black Americans are sensitive to the effects of lower blood pressure due to decreasing salt intake. When you reduce sodium intake, the systolic blood pressure also reduces. Some seasoned food like garlic, onions, spices, herbs, and celery boosts antioxidant flavor and content and reduces the sodium content in our bodies.
Change your method of cooking.
Every person has a different method of cooking. We have to understand the best and advisable way to prepare our food because other methods affect disease risk and the composition of nutrients in the meal. Fried foods such as fried fish, fried potatoes, and fried chicken may lead to mortalities associated with heart diseases. Some methods involving high heat cooking such as grilling, roasting, and frying may induce chemicals such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon and acrylamide heterocyclic amines.
PAHs and HCAs increase the risk of contracting cancer. Stewing and boiling vegetables, meats, and grains may lead to nutrients loss.
Steps for cooking healthy
Remove any parts of food that are charred and any fat before serving food.
Aim to attain golden brown instead of dark brown color when cooking foods rich in starch.
Marinate your meat in vinegar, onions, herbs, or citrus fruits.
Conclusion
Soul foods contain numerous traditional legacies and are rich in flavor. Some foods have high sodium, fat, and added sugars, while others, like leafy greens, have nutrients.
