Food for Thought: The Economics and Enslavement of Eating

Dr. Irving Pascal

The recent Caribbean Wellness Day activities reinforced my decision to share my thoughts on the social and political aspects of food and good health. Most of what we think we KNOW about food and eating is actually based on BELIEF. These beliefs come from what our parents told us; what we pick up from the society around us; what we accept from advertising; what we read in magazines and books; what we see on T.V; and what our health practioners tell us (or don’t tell us).

Instead, I would like to suggest that the only confirmation of belief is EXPERIENCE; and it is based on my experience and the experience of others that I am sharing what I can about food.

In my medical practice I mainly treat illnesses involving the Ear, Nose and Throat, but eating practices have a major impact on nearly all medical conditions. Therefore, I found myself becoming sensitive to the issues of the economics and enslavement of eating while counselling patients on their diet. Moreover, I discuss Food for Thought from an African holistic perspective and because I always look to The African Ancestors for guidance this necessarily informs the fundamentals of all my thought.

Many people complain that The Caribbean Family is under threat! What I want to remind us all is that whatever its structure, one of the primary functions of any family is to feed its members. Our recent ancestors, having overcome physical enslavement, we Caribbean people of African descent often find ourselves focussing on other areas of oppression. One subtle aspect of this continued form of oppression that is overlooked but reflects our mental, economic and educational bondage is our continued enslavement by what we eat. What I call NUTRITIONAL SLAVERY.

In traditional, continental African culture, the socialization as it pertained to food was guided primarily by the adage, “Let your food be your medicine and your medicine your food”. The implication is that by definition food should not only provide energy for life and growth but should also prevent or cure disease.

Therefore, for purposes of this article, I differentiate between FOOD (life enhancing and therapeutic) – and “FOOD-LIKE” (or NON-FOOD) anything else that we consume orally that does not subscribe to this definition. From the ancient African perspective the emphasis was on the health (physical, mental and spiritual) aspect of food. Contrast this with our present socialization where the act of eating seems primarily concerned with pleasure and convenience with apparently little concern for WELLNESS.

As noted previously, our nutritional brainwashing originates from several sources but perhaps the most insidious is our bewilderment by slick advertising, a form of witchcraft that acts at the subconscious level and manipulates our beliefs. Almost universally, we have come to accept that food is not about health, but happiness. Food advertising leads us to believe that it is more important that food be “finger-licking good” (pleasure) rather than “good for you” (health) and that convenience or “fast food” makes for happy, modern families.

However, food is not just about the “feel-good factor”. The economics of food production and consumption is a well recognized geo-political phenomenon. On a basic level we can see that the food we grow and sell is subject to international regulation and control by global entities such as the WTO, Fair Trade, etc. At another level, food is also used as a political tool for control of populations and in part explains the Developed World’s focus on their food security and sovereignty. Two quotes that exemplify this follow.
“Control the oil and you control nations, Control the food and you control the people.” Henry Kissinger, US Secretary of State, 1973.

“Food is power. We use it to change behaviour. Some may call that bribery. We do not apologize.” Catherine Bertine, Executive Director, UN Word Food Program from 1992-2002.

Undeniably food has power over life. The first two acts human beings perform after birth are BREATHING and EATING (breast milk). This points to the two most fundamental, acts to sustain human life, the former (breathing) is the domain of the Creator – it is involuntary – we have no control over it. The latter (eating) is however completely under our control. As adults, we should be wary of abdicating this divine responsibility of what we put in our mouths to anyone, least of all those who share the world-view of a Henry Kissinger or Catherine Bertine.

ASPECTS OF NUTRITIONAL SLAVERY
The programming for Nutritional enslavement begins at birth. Rather than the traditional breast milk and then wholesome fruits and vegetables we are programmed to focus on a wide variety of nice-tasting, processed baby foods generally with preservatives, salt and sugars (in tins, bottles and plastics!). This sets children up to become adults obsessed with pleasure-seeking behaviour, perpetual need for variety and hyper stimulation and the pursuit of instant gratification.

Additionally, the packaging and hyper-processing has a deleterious effect on the environment and the act of eating away from the home reduces family bonding. The superficial attributes concerned with how food tastes and looks is highlighted rather than how good it is for you. Worse, fruits and vegetables that naturally taste good lose their appeal next to the heightened sugar content and bright colouring of processed foods. Families “trust” complete strangers (often in foreign countries) to grow, process, package and prepare the meals they eat. It is amazing to me that we continue to be so naive and trusting despite the evidence of the physical enslavement of our ancestors in the not too distant past.

ECONOMICS
We ingest “non-foods” in large quantities not just because they taste nice but in part because they are not really wholly satisfying – they are created to leave us hungry for more. But as a consequence, we put profit in the hands of whoever supplies the raw materials and processes the “non-foods”. We also hand over our hard earned cash to the Pharmaceutical companies (that make drugs) and Physicians (that prescribe the drugs) and Pharmacists (that sell the drugs) to treat the dis-ease caused by the very “non-foods” that we eat. The diet of the western world is such that our bodies typically only really need one third of what we eat; the other two thirds is superfluous and is stored as fat, clogs up arteries, creates bulges in our midriff, makes us lethargic or hyperactive and essentailly promotes sickness.

That is not to say that food is the only reason we become sick but it is increasingly a factor in those lifestyle diseases that are rife in the Caribbean – Obesity, hypertension, diabetes and cancers. And for those people who say they use certain “non-foods” because they are cheap, well you end up paying twice – once at the checkout counter in the supermarket and then at the hospital or clinic or pharmacy looking for an antidote for the “non-food” you’ve ingested.

HOW TO FREE OURSELVES FROM THIS NUTRITIONAL HOLOCAUST
We should approach food in a traditional African cultural way. Most of what we need to know about how to eat is already known. Our fore parents knew it and so did we until we allowed “nutrition experts” and advertisers to shake our confidence in common sense ancestral traditions, the testimony of our senses, the wisdom of our fore-mothers and the evidence of our bodies’ health. Our diet must be a holistic activity. More than just a physical act, it includes psychic and spiritual components for example, prayers, libation, family gathering etc. The following are some important factors to consider.
• Communal sharing of food is important. Shared meals are about much more than fuelling bodies. They are uniquely human institutions where our species exercise language and this thing we call culture. It is at the communal table that we socialise and civilise our children, bless the food and teach them manners and the art of conversation. It is at the communal table that we can reinforce social norms about sharing, empathy, greed and waste. Communal meal sharing as opposed to the “fast-food” culture strengthens family life, and it reduces the likelihood of snacking.

We need to practise personal responsibility. Use at least the same level of care with which you choose your car or your clothes when you choose your food.

Eating should be a thoughtful process. Ask questions:-
• What is the brand? Typically the freshest food (from your backyard or your neighbour’s farm) is not labelled. The best food is home-grown, organic, local and pesticide free.
• What’s the colour? How does it look? Fresh fruits with a vibrant colour are best. If you must eat rice or flour, the brown version is better than the highly refined white flour or sugar etc.
• How efficient is it? What’s the calorie content of food? Will it give you energy for a few hours or will you be left feeling hungry in half an hour’s time? Foods high in fibre and complex carbohydrates that give a slow release of energy are more effective than foods that give a quick ‘sugar-fix’.
• What does it cost? Cheaper is not always better. There is often a hidden cost. Is it genetically modified? Where is the profit going? Will this food help, prevent or cause disease?

People of African descent have different nutritional and dietary requirements than other peoples. It’s just the way that we are wired. Take lactose intolerance (inability to digest milk) for instance. This is primarily a condition of people of African descent. It simply illustrates that we can’t eat what everyone else eats and assume that there will be no negative side effects.

We must minimize our consumption of denatured, highly refined, processed, synthetic chemical substances ie “non-foods”. Their constant consumption makes us “constipated slaves” physically, economically and mentally. Our obsession with sugar, flour, salt and fried food are addictions we cultivated from birth and early childhood. We should treat these food-like substances as carriers of ‘dis’-ease. Obesity, diabetes, hypertension and many cancers are generally the result of “food-paros”. We need to take these addictions seriously. We should introduce larger amounts of whole or live foods in our diets. By that I mean as fresh and pure as possible.

Even animals in nature understand that “Life begets life”. One has to wonder whether anything that needs to be cooked at high temperatures can still have much nutritional value, when we know that cooking destroys enzymes and vitamins and denatures fats and proteins rendering them less nutritious, less digestible and therefore constipating. Some foods however will need to be heated for reasons of sanitation; also when they have been stored for lean times cooking might be the only way they can be eaten, but fresher is better.

To further protect ourselves and facilitate our emancipation from Nutritional Slavery we need at the national level to:
• Reconsider the selling of our farm lands “willy-nilly” to anyone who can afford without having an idea of what will become of these lands in the long term. Why can’t we lease these lands? Will future generations have access to them to produce food when they eventually face the global food crisis akin to the present global economic meltdown?
• Improve our regulations to control and screen our imported foods.
• The Ministry of Health and Government needs to channel much more resources to educate citizens in order to effect behaviour change about these “non- foods” that are enslaving and killing them. This will help them to make wiser food choices for themselves and their families.

Our policy makers however will need to be mindful that seeking to convince individuals to practice healthy behaviours without addressing the broader socio-political, economic or cultural factors which may hinder such behaviour will be largely fruitless and cruel as it then holds the individual solely responsible for forces outside his/her control. Without a proactive comprehensive multi-sectoral government “healthy eating policy”, being ill becomes implicitly the individual’s fault and a condition that they deserve.

Finally, I submit that no social cry for African Liberation or Emancipation can succeed with a people who are constipated and enslaved by the “non-foods” they eat. So as we seek to further decolonize our minds and liberate ourselves from all forms of enslavement including Nutritional Enslavement, I recommend that we must as a priority revolutionise our diets in order to reclaim our minds. We are indeed what we eat!

May the spirits of my ancestors be pleased.

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14 Comments

  1. Roland Mitchell
    June 16, 2018

    IP, you write well, and in very high language that some of us cannot understand.
    Please note:
    You see many people coming to your clinic with life style diseases: Obesity, Hypertension, Diabetes and Cancer. These diseases are caused by the stress of living in Dominica. People do not have enough money to have holidays, build comfortable homes, take regular exercise and destress their bodies. That is the truth of the matter.

    Our water supply is full of chlorine which causes cancer.
    The preservatives in the tinned foods which we import and also causing cancer.
    Stress in finding money to pay taxes like VAT is causing Cancer and Diabetes.

    Bad diet is causing Hypertension.Too much salt, Bread, Sugar. The wheat in the diet is killing us slowly.

    People are not self sufficient in food and meat and milk.

    There is not much variety in the diet.

    These are the issues facing typical house wives.

    Come along IP. Use your good brain, and don’t give us this long speech.
    Tell us…

    • waypapa
      June 18, 2018

      Rolland Michell tell us why all the diseases you mention affecting people around the world in countries where they can afford a holiday and everything else.

    • ?????????
      June 18, 2018

      Roland why u diss Doctor? What he is saying is true! People eating wrong! We choose to be stressful. Phillipians 4:6 – 7 speaks about peace which can only be found in the one who created the Universe who gave Jesus to die for us. There is no reason to tell IP (because you know him well) that his speech is long & to use his brains. Stop being disrespectful, IP is doing the right thing. Look at all the centenarians we have. Their diet was simple but nutritious; used most of what we have. Nenen just turned 100. We have had a lot of persons dying at 94 years plus. What did they do well – not become a slave to all the processed food that is available to us now because we modern. Roland you need to look back at what we were eating before; before you migrated & got hooked on the “fast food”. Roland my friend, maybe you need some more exercising & don’t stress yourself too much. There is dancing to; find peace with the only who can give it. Stop stress to buy the junk.

      • ?????????
        June 18, 2018

        cont’d ….. Eat what we grow.. There is natural souse water in Dominica. Hurricane Maria destroyed all the comfortable homes so are you stressing over those material things? You are not alone; there are those worse off than you. We choose what we eat. We know sugar is bad so why use it; the same for wheat. We do not need money to exercise. Why do we have to use tin stuff? of course there is variety in the diet but we buy wrong. Some persons do not like vegetables. Our staples are here… and we spend our money how we choose too. We do not have priority …. some tend to buy fast food KFC instead of the staples which are available. Even after hurricane Maria, we had a lot of root crops – Sweet Potato is a very nutritious staple and healthy. We had Dasheens, yams, and lots of food after Maria. Even fish was plentiful. Are we grateful? Is there supposed to be stress? What about water… Lots and lots of waterways (source). Live IP alone Roland. He is right!

  2. Roger Burnett
    June 15, 2018

    Dr. Pascal, this is an excellent article.

    You are so correct in likening slick advertising to a form of witchcraft. Not only does it influence what we eat, it also attempts to control every facet of our lives.

    In the 1950’s Vance Packard highlighted media manipulation in is book “The Hidden Persuaders”. His message is even more relevant today.

  3. Bois Caribe
    June 15, 2018

    Excellent piece Doc – good food for thought

  4. Ki - ZERBO
    June 15, 2018

    IP your contribution to raising our consciousness as it relates to health and dis-eases is unsurpassed! No wonder you are always “targeted” for your forthrightness – characteristically Marigotian -. Nontheless, our ancestors reminded us that one can take a horse to the well, but can’t make it drink. Liberation is individual- has always been – and so, since none but ourselves can free our minds, let us hope that the transformation germinates, grows and eventually blossoms into the great Baobab tree of life.
    They also taught us: misery loves company.
    HOTEP!

  5. BG
    June 14, 2018

    I love this article.
    As a Public Health/Epidemiology professional, food as it relates to NCDs in Dominica is one of my main area of interest. I would love to partner with someone or a group towards initiatives geared at Food and Wellness in Dominica.

  6. REAL!!!!!
    June 14, 2018

    DR.Eipigh…Excellent article which I hope can get into the hands of every Dominican on island.

    You have done the writing and research work, now our Health Ministry needs to do everything in their power to get this information into every Nook and Cranny of the population.

    Especially now we have a International report I believe which suggest Dominica is the 3rd Country in the world with the highest rate of cancer per capital.

  7. derp
    June 14, 2018

    good read, very good article

  8. Orchid
    June 14, 2018

    Dr. Pascal, thank you for this article,informative and a great reminder of the decisions we make about what we feed our bodies. Good reading.

  9. Lewis Romain
    June 14, 2018

    Very interesting article.

  10. ?????????
    June 14, 2018

    NB Read this article too “Dietitian encourages consumption of healthy foods” dated October, 28th , 2015 on DNO. Also below this article under “Related Articles” are a few more relevant articles for reading too.

  11. ?????????
    June 14, 2018

    Dr. Pascal very thought provoking article. The DGS clan. I read all through it and I do hope the daily bloggers read this very timely article. And then we wonder why so many diseases – Cancer etc.

    This is truth in itself: “We must minimize our consumption of denatured, highly refined, processed, synthetic chemical substances ie “non-foods”. Their constant consumption makes us “constipated slaves” physically, economically and mentally. Our obsession with sugar, flour, salt and fried food are addictions we cultivated from birth and early childhood. We should treat these food-like substances as carriers of ‘dis’-ease. Obesity, diabetes, hypertension and many cancers are generally the result of “food-paros”. We need to take these addictions seriously. We should introduce larger amounts of whole or live foods in our diets. By that I mean as fresh and pure as possible.”
    People please read the above for surely we have become enslaved eaters.
    Read and comment – not politics…

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