What food do people in Haiti eat?

Answer 1

As we Haitians acculturate to life in the US, we find ourselves adopting the "typical American diet", one that happens to be high in Calories, in Sugar and in Fat; one that is low in Fiber and in some protective nutrients. This diet is increasingly being associated with the development of chronic diseases and is the result of a superabundance of foods, coupled with the power of advertising. In the US, the advances of the medical field are sure to increase our life span. What now appears to be our responsibility is to take decent care of our bodies, so that the quality of our lives will not suffer now and in later years. We are therefore being called to be selective, to choose the foods that we wish to include in our diet, and those that we do not wish to accept. We may want to move away from this new diet high in animal foods and return to one that more closely resembles the traditional Haitian diet, one that is based on plant foods, one that is limited in animal foods, and that makes light use of processed foods.

Our traditional diet was based on starchy foods and we have kept them as an integral and healthy part of our diet in the US. The main components of a healthy diet should be: Rice, Plantain, Cassava, Cassava Bread, Potato, Corn, Cornmeal, Oatmeal, Pasta, Bread, Breadfruit. These foods provide the bulk of the calories in a Normal diet. They are being promoted due to their high content of what we call Complex Carbohydrates. They are high in Fiber, and they are generally low in Fat. And, most importantly, they provide satiety to our diet.

It is unfortunate that in the typical Haitian diet, we observe an exclusive use of white flour and white flour products. Our Haitian bread and biscuits are essentially made of white flour. Overprocessing of the flour takes away some of its Vitamins and Fiber content. Our whole grain cereals, such as Rice, are of course very nutritious, but here again, is a very common use of white, polished rice, that may be stripped of many nutrients. Oatmeal, with its high content of B Vitamins, Protein and Fiber, appears to be a cereal of choice to make hot porridges, but the practice of straining the oatmeal, effectively lowers our intake of nutrients. For an even better diet, we may now wish to experience the whole grain breads and cereals that are now readily available to us.

Let us also assess our intake of fruits and vegetables. These are the bright stars of the typical Haitian diet, since many of them appear to be a truckload of nutrients, known and yet unknown. They are called protective foods, as they are noted for their content of Vitamin C, Vitamin A. They are also good sources of Iron, Calcium and Fiber. In recent years, we have also found them to carry nutrients called phytochemicals, which may provide some protection against Heart disease and certain cancers.

Some of the most nutrient dense fruit and vegetables in our diet include:

• Guava, Watermelon, Grapefruit, Papaya, Cantaloupe, Orange, Apricots, Mango

• Spinach, Watercress, Sweet Potato (yellow), Pumpkin, Carrots, Okra, Parsley, Cabbage, Garlic, Onions.

Let us eat them fresh. Let us eat them whole. Let's eat plenty of them.

Here we may wish to reconsider our techniques for cooking vegetables. In traditional Haitian cuisine, we cook our vegetables and we cook them to death; sometimes hours at end, and in an open pot. But we now know that exposure to air, water and heat destroys naturally occurring vitamins especially the B Vitamins and Vitamin C. On the standpoint of nutrition, the success of vegetable cookery should lie in three techniques: using the least amount of water, in the shortest amount of time, and using a tight fitting cover.

Another area to explore is the variety of vegetables that were not known to us back home. With time, we may get accustomed to the taste of Kale, Mustard Greens or Brussels Sprouts.

We may also wish to consider the types and quantities of animal foods that we now ingest, mostly meat, eggs, milk products. They should constitute a small part of a healthy diet. In Haiti, the high cost of animal foods prohibited their extensive use. Milk was used in small amounts, and often reserved for young children. Meat was used in small pieces, and usually "stretched" with vegetables. An average chicken might be cut in 12 to 14 small pieces, to be shared by a large family.

As we adapt to life in the US, our intake of animal foods increases and we now join the average American who consumes 2 to 3 times the recommended amount of protein. We also observe a frequent use of high fat meats and eggs by some. The consumption of these animal foods is associated with a very high intake of Fat.

For better health, we may wish to

• try hard to divorce with the notion that meat is a necessary part of a healthy diet;
• adhere to the portion sizes of flesh that were served to us in Haiti;
• choose milk products that have been stripped of their fat content;
• rely even more on non-animal sources of protein such as our dried beans and peanuts. Our Dried Beans and Peas are now recognized as valued foods, because of a remarkable combination of qualities. Besides being low in cost, Dried Beans and Peas are high in Protein, high in Complex Carbohydrates, high in Fiber and in Iron. They are also low in Fat, low in Salt, and they contain no cholesterol.

Lastly, we may also wish to question our use of Fats and Sugar. In the typical Haitian diet, the use of sweetening agents is high and our use of oil and other fats is nothing less than extravagant. The main role of Fats and Sugar appears to lie in providing calories to our body. When these foods are taken in excess, the caloric value of the diet goes up. It is undeniable that Fats and Sugar add great taste to our foods. It is also very true that the extra calories from their overuse will contribute to obesity.

With each passing year comes the need to completely reassess the foods that we usually consume, seeking to bring more variety into our diet while trying to implement the latest recommendations of authorities in the field of nutrition. This we may need to do, before the diagnosis of a chronic disease, before the first heart attack, before the first trip to the Emergency Room.

Answer 2

KFC no they dont