Asian immigrants: Eating in lean times can be good and delicious

Frugal Asian immigrants are eating healthier now that their budgets are tighter.    - - Donna Poisl

By ANDREW LAM, New American Media

SAN FRANCISCO – Studies show that immigrants gain weight and their children tend to live shorter lives than them, and that their eating habits change for the worse the longer they stay. But there is very little information on how many revert back to their cultural habits in difficult economic times — and how many actually become healthier as a result.

A few years ago I interviewed Thien Tran,47, who came from Vietnam and managed a beauty salon and nail spa on Nob Hill, and he said that he had been eating better and losing weight since the economic downturn. “My wife makes Vietnamese food and I take it to work,” noted Thien. “I used to order burgers and fries or Thai noodles, but that is too expensive. My lunch went from $8 to $2 a day.”
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