Eat your vegetables, they say
Eat more fruits, they say
Eat less starch, they say
But there is a price we must pay…
“The rice will stretch,” said a close friend of mine a few years ago. I burst out laughing during our conversation about the high cost of ground provisions pitched as healthier foods than rice and flour. And indeed, they are. But when it comes to healthy eating, it seems the deck is stacked against our pockets. The healthier the food, the higher the price.
Health professionals recommend that our meals be plated as follows:
¼ grains
¼ protein
½ vegetables/fruits
Harvard School of Public Health advises, “Make most of your meal vegetables and fruits – ½ of your plate. Aim for colour and variety, and remember that potatoes don’t count as vegetables on the Healthy Eating Plate because of their negative impact on blood sugar.”
If you are living in Jamaica, you have been experiencing the jaw-dropping prices of ground provisions, especially vegetables, recently. On one occasion, I saw one sweet pepper being sold for J$800! The same is true for tomatoes, cho-cho, and others.
Images spotted on social media:
Now, depending on the number of persons that one has to feed, how far does a $1000 cabbage stretch? Faced with a choice, the person on a tight budget will deprive himself/herself of the healthy food, and opt instead for mere sustenance by way of cheaper foods that can be bought in bulk.
Is Hurricane Beryl the culprit? Amid high food prices in general, one wonders. Time will tell.
“Let them rot!”, said another friend of mine a couple of weeks ago. She was not buying into the hurricane argument, and held firmly to her view that sellers can do better.
If we are to achieve and maintain the goal of a well-balanced and healthy diet, we will have to dig deep into our pockets or dig the ground and plant. We will pay for the food or the medicine. The popular phrase, 'Let thy food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food', is often ascribed to Hippocrates (400 BC), and used to emphasise the importance of nutrition to prevent or cure disease.
Jamaica’s NCDs Crisis
According to Jamaica’s Ministry of Health & Wellness, unfortunately, Jamaica is burdened with both under and over nutrition. The population’s diet is usually high in fats and oils, sodium/salt and deficient in fruits, vegetables and dietary fibre. Continuous poor eating habits can lead to increased prevalence of iron deficiency anaemia, and chronic non-communicable diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, strokes and cancers.
Hypertension (High Blood Pressure), traditionally called “Pressure”, is the most common chronic condition that is managed by primary care physicians and other health practitioners in Jamaica. Data from the Jamaica Health and Lifestyle Survey 2016-2017 found that approximately 34% of Jamaicans 15 years and older years are affected and 40% of these persons are unaware of their condition.
The Ministry is pushing prevention through healthy eating, daily physical activity, management of stress & mental health, among others.
A Culture of ‘Veg’
It can be argued that Jamaica does not have a culture of healthy eating, for the most part. The recommended portions are often the reverse, with half the plate (or more) containing rice, flour dumplings, etc., ‘veg’, and the amount of protein is dependent on the circumstances. With protein prices often out of range, persons may opt for the affordable bony parts like chicken neck, chicken back, turkey neck, and so on. Delicious in their own right, but deficient in nutritional value over time.
Vegetables are on the ‘side order’ list, diminishing the significance of such foods. Local cook shop operators often substitute vegetables with macaroni salads. When asked if you would like ‘veg’, you can expect about two tablespoons of tossed salad if you are lucky. That's 'veg'! A case of cost containment or simply giving customers what they want?
A country rich in spices, vegetables aren’t so tasty to some persons.
Essentially, many Jamaicans have become accustomed to eating meals that do not meet the recommended portion of vegetables for a healthy diet. Any shift will require a combination of a change in mindset and pricing.
I say we start with the prices; make it easier to buy vegetables. It’s not just Beryl. Vegetables and fruits have never been quite affordable in Jamaica.
It is a system designed to fill the pockets of sellers, whilst not filling the bellies of the buyers. And until it is addressed, people will continue to stretch the rice.
In the meantime, we can skip the over-priced ones and buy the ones that are more affordable, like cucumber, callaloo, pak choy, and so on. Eat those in abundance, because 'veg' is not enough.
I am Suzette Campbell.
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