Wanted to take some time to talk about one of my favorite things to eat, soul food! Now there's quite a bit of questioning going on in my head as to whether or not soul food is actually bad for you. When I say soul food, I mean foods like fried chicken, mac & cheese, cornbread, candied yams, etc. These foods eaten on a regular basis by popular belief are said to contribute to health risks such as heart disease, stroke, and high cholesterol.
My view on this particular topic is how we digest certain foods goes back back to our ancestry and what our ancestors ate. Meaning a person of European decent wouldn't take well to soul food or foods that are salty and starchy. Those of African American decent usually don't digest dairy very well like someone of Swiss origin. I believe that it isn't eating soul food alone that is causing us [African Americans] to be the leader in deaths related to heart disease, but rather all the other things we consume along with it from time to time like fast food, added salt, fried foods, as well as the quantity of these foods.
My theory is mainly self supported just by seeing older or elderly African Americans who by the BMI chart are overweight, have been eating soul food all their lives and still do, yet have no major health issues and are living very long. We're the age group (25 to 44) that have a much shorter predicted life span than our grands and great-grands.
Same goes for other races like Italians. Eating pasta and other foods high in carbs on a regular basis in my opinion probably won't kill them.
The truth is, and I know us young adults hate to face it, but all these fast food chains and fried chicken chains are probably the trigger to a lot of the obesity rates in our age group. The only thing I can say if you absolutely have to have a Big Mac, which i absolutely have to have a Wendys double cheeseburger, just do so in moderation and dont forget to exercise! It could save your life.
Michelle
