Food in 2 Worlds: Are Healthy Eating Messages Reaching NYC’s Immigrants?

More programs are needed to educate immigrants about healthy eating in their new country. Many serious conditions and obesity are common for immigrants.   - - Donna Poisl

By Juhie Bhatia
At a ‘Cooking Matters for Families’ class at the Bronx Spanish Evangelical Church in December, around 30 participants sat under fluorescent lights at tables with Christmas-themed plastic coverings. Fruits and vegetables lay in front of them on flimsy cutting boards. The day’s menu: veggie pizza on whole wheat English muffins and a fruit and yogurt parfait. The instructions were translated into Spanish, as two-thirds of the class was Hispanic. Then everyone started chopping. The children–who made up half the class–used colored plastic knives.

While obesity and related health conditions disproportionately impact Latinos and other minority groups in New York City, there is no coordinated effort to reach immigrant groups with healthy eating messages. To fill the gap, various organizations and individuals are developing their own ways to encourage these groups to eat healthier.
http://news.feetintwoworlds.org/2012/03/13/tailored-healthy-eating-messages-target-nyc-immigrants/
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