Originally published October 11 2005
Food Pyramid revised by dietitians to widen its cultural relevance
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Eighteen dietitians living in the Orlando area have redesigned the food pyramid to better include the specific dietary concerns of blacks and other minorities, dubbing their version the "Soul Food Pyramid."
Black Americans are about twice as likely to die of diabetes-related complications as are whites.
Millions of dollars have been spent trying to figure out why and in efforts to change the disparity.
Weaver and 18 black Orlando-area dietitians have revamped the food pyramid to be culturally relevant to blacks and other minorities, calling their version the "Soul Food Pyramid."
They met last month to put final touches on it before printing.
Weaver, author of three published cookbooks and a fourth on the way -- including The New Soul Food Cookbook for People With Diabetes, with Fabiola Gaines, and Slim Down Sister, with Fabiola Gaines and Angela Ebron -- wants people to understand they can enjoy many favorite foods without giving in to high-fat and high-sugar diets.
Seasoning vegetables with smoked turkey necks instead of salt pork can maintain soul-food traditions without all the fat.
"Food is one of the biggest freedoms we have in this country," she said.
Johnny got a raise, so we go out to eat.
Christmas dinner is not going to kill you, but if we continue to eat like this, it will."
The worst complications of diabetes affect blacks in disproportionate numbers.
The death rate for diabetic blacks was more than twice that of Hispanics and nearly three times that of non-Hispanic whites in 2001.
The state Legislature pumped more than $6 million into education targeting minority disparities in health, including diabetes, last year.
"You can say Hispanics and blacks are very similar in that we both love our rice, love our beans, love our smoked pork and smoked meats.
Both cultures have been living that life of food that tastes good for a long time.
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