I have had the privilege of working with Indigenous peoples, in many countries around the world, and had become absorbed in to studying how to make their metabolism recover from the onslaught from Europe 500 years ago and from elsewhere since then..
Nutritional Imperialism or Colonialism are fairly new.
I remember standing in front of a store front, announcing gleefully a gift to the Cambodians
It was just ten years ago
It was the first Kentucky Fried Chicken outlet in Cambodia
At the same time, there was an Australian do-gooder visiting Cambodia, who declared that Carbohydrates are bad for you and that Khmer people (who have been consuming rice at least for 2000 years) cease and desist the use of this staple.
Why do Cuban immigrants in search of Economic freedom come to Miami, the first thing they accumulate is a growing waistline..Most Central Americans put on a hefty 25 lbs to their body in the first year or two..
Something pure or natural is being polluted and I can speak authoritatively from the point of view of the traditional tribes that I have worked with
Like the Yanomami of the Amazon with the most pristine Microbiome, the north american indians also had a pristine gastro intestinal landscape and the diversity of their microbiome began disappearing as they were being forced to change their Life Style (Religion, ways of getting food ).
Their metabolism is pure
When I say that, in these times of Political correctness, I mean that their metabolism, like they themselves in their ways of thinking is much closer to the Creation, while others had been polluted or added upon with their share of the hundreds and thousands of years of human history.
While moving around, being flexible and good respiration are important , no Gym in USA or Australia or UK will combat the ill effects of a badly chosen fast food or restaurant food.
In each and every country, it is possible to eat well, in some, it is easier than the others.
Blessed are those who are not YET been visited by the Highly Processed Foods or as my Ticuna Indian friend calls it: Industrialized food .
I am being enlightened by a Lakota friend of mine and his nutritionally erudite wife about how an INDIAN body can be brought back to health and the Diseases eliminated.
I may talk about the low glycaemic index or Fibre content, but they are already using mostly home grown (hydroponic) organic vegetables and I may mention the QUALITY of the food .
Today is the 17th day of our conversation. He is no longer on oral medications for High Blood Sugar nor on Insulin. Both had to be stopped. He has lost an impressive 24 lbs and he has set a goal for himself that is congruous with his height.
It is possible. Nutrition is constant. Exercise (our grandparents did not EXERCISE but they did EXERT to obtain their FOOD) is sporadic and Interior calm is essential. I have stressed the importance of Meditation.
When I ask my patients whether they can maintain a self discipline when it comes to Nutrition, strangely enough the answer is NO. Our nutrition now is guided by the facility of obtaining food and leaving cooking to some machinery , ignorant of the QUALITY of the food ..
Some of the highest rates of cardiovascular diseases in the USA are among the Immigrants from Asia, especially the Indian subcontinent. It is tragic to trade CURRY for a CUPCAKE..
It does help being an Anthropologist when working with the Indigenous people. Humans are not machines and they come with long histories .. one of which is their Nutritional History.
Here is a snippet of our conversation today..
BT is the Patient
Dr, its me.
J is his wife
BT
I had popcorn today as a snack at it brought my blood sugar down as do sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds. I crave these all often so J believes it was a way of self medicating for a long time
Dr :
Interesting
One explanation
The body needs magnesium for over 300 processes, including breaking down food for energy. Studies have suggested that some of the macromolecules in pumpkin seeds may help manage blood sugar. Low magnesium levels are common in people with insulin resistance, which is one reason why diabetes occurs
BT:
That would be consistent with what we are seeing.
Dr :
Remember, your insides and metabolism are PURE, now you are making it even PURER with appropriate Nutrition and then the body tells you .
Typical Indian diet “generalizing” of course. Is HIGH fibre and LOW glycemic index. Where as the Modern American diet is exactly opposite .. I almost said wa si chu but some people do not like the word
Ed: Wa si chu is the Lakota term for White Man
BT:
Makes sense. J in trying to incorporate more grains and fruit now that my blood sugars are down to normal range. It is interesting to experiment. We weren’t sure how I would react to beans or Wild rice but based on the ancestral link it shouldn’t have a negative impact. It is interesting to prove your theory correct.
Dr :
Lakota is a wonderful language. Healing is wa pee yah. Joining together which is the same as YOGA or union
Truly we need to let our Indian relatives know what has happened and KUDOS to you and J . I have always believed that the majority of the body related problems among Indians are related to FOOD .. there is of course Social Responsibility which Outsiders won’t understand and also spiritual connection ( or mind set in the American parlance).
BT:
Definitely agree. We are learning so much through this journey and reflecting on how we were eating and how most of it negatively impacts the environment is eye opening. Trying to eat fresh locally grown produce as much as possible is helping. We live in a nice area that has many locally grown options fortunately.
In the title, I used THANK THE ISRAELIS.. why?
Of course, they are my people but nationalism does not come into play here, many of the nutritional studies at the micro-molecular level and microbiome level were done in Israel first.
Epigenetics also has a heavy Israeli scientific input.
So thank you, Toda Rabah, to the Israeli scientific community.
