Finding Balance Between Nutrition and Tradition
[ad_1]
Hispanic Heritage Month celebrates the histories, cultures, achievements, and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. One way Hispanics and Latinos commonly honor their culture is through food.
As a Peruvian woman living with IBD, that knowledge is, well, hard to swallow. My diet has always been uniquely different in the best way possible. Although many of my preferred Peruvian recipes are healthy, when I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, I often wondered if my traditional diet was affecting me, for better or for worse. I reviewed the IBD recommendations that were available online at the time, but the dos and don’ts all skewed toward the typical American diet and suggested things like eliminating hamburgers and hot dogs, and avoiding dairy products.
I found that the IBD flare recommendations were to eat a low-fiber and low-residue diet, which for me was far from ideal for my Crohn’s flares, which leaned toward constipation. Additionally many of the flare-friendly foods weren’t foods I’d eat as a Hispanic patient. Foods like:
- Applesauce
- Canned fruits
- Peanut butter
Fortunately, today there are IBD dietitians who can help you find the right foods. But 20 years ago, I was on my own and had to follow a diet that was completely opposite from the one I was reading about and opposite what was being recommended.
I started incorporating much higher fiber foods, including: whole grains, cooked vegetables, increased fruits, and lean meats. And I also realized that I didn’t have to exclude coffee from my diet (thank goodness!). There was no mention of Peruvian foods I loved to eat. But I’ve learned that I can eat some of those foods, too.
I am glad to find that doctors and health organizations are also becoming more aware of the importance of cultural cuisine for people with a chronic disease that affects their GI tract. Below are three interesting developments in culturally competent foods for Hispanic IBD patients.
1. Flavorful Findings: Intriguing Research on Hispanic IBD Diets
In May 2022, I was honored to attend Digestive Disease Week, held in Chicago, as a member of the pilot cohort of the AGA (American Gastroenterological Association) IBD Patient Influencer Program. While I attended as many IBD sessions as possible, I was most intrigued by the culturally specific sessions. One session that I really enjoyed was titled, “Hispanic Diet High in Vegetables Is Associated With Lower Clinical and Biochemical Disease Activity in Individuals With IBD: A Longitudinal Study of Disease Activity and Microbiome Signatures.” It was a one-year study that looked at the role diet played in IBD inflammation in 214 Hispanic patients. (Although diet does not cause IBD, research shows that it can influence symptoms.)
The patients (85 with Crohn’s disease and 129 with ulcerative colitis) were divided into four groups based on their diets and followed for a year. Researchers found that the group with the highest consumption of traditional Hispanic starchy vegetables — yucca, taro, cocoyam — had the lowest level of disease activity.
I was excited to see researchers focusing on the Hispanic diet in IBD, since the population of Hispanic patients with IBD is growing.
The lead author of the study, Oriana M. Damas, MD, who presented at DDW, said that this study was a “first steps toward developing a culturally tailored anti-inflammatory diet for Hispanics with IBD.”
2. Expanding the Hispanic IBD Food Palate
Additionally, IBD dietitians are developing a better understanding of Hispanic and Latino foods for IBD patients. I recently attended the Cedars-Sinai Advanced Dietary IBD Education and Training (DIET) kickoff symposium, September 21–22 in Los Angeles, where the registered dietitian Neha D. Shah, RD, presented a list of IBD-friendly foods from various ethnic populations, including Hispanics and Latinos, such as:
- Tortillas
- Cactus
- Chayote
- Corn
- Guava
- Jicama
- Mango
- Plantain
- Potato
- Tamarind
- Yucca
For patients to know that these foods are safe to consume with IBD without triggering flares or worsening symptoms brings reassurance. In Peru, rice and potatoes are staples in our diet, and it’s often been suggested that I consider eliminating those. Knowing that some of my cultural foods are IBD-friendly foods and may bring long-term benefits helps ease the worry.
3. Flavorful Discoveries: A Go-To IBD Recipe Finder
In early 2023, the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation launched a recipe finder website called Gut Friendly Recipes, in which IBD patients can search through hundreds of recipes (more than 500 to date) by diet, occasion, and type of meal. Patients can choose to exclude foods, save favorite recipes, and create seven-day meal plans. I’ve perused the recipes for ideas, particularly because the imagery is so appealing. And although I currently don’t have to alter my diet in a specific way (for example for a flare or a stricture), I’ve found that the simplicity of the recipes makes cooking so much easier for me. One of the things I love the most are the snack recipes, because that’s something I’ve always struggled with finding healthy alternatives for. All recipes have been approved by IBD dietitians, and nutrition facts are also listed for each recipe. But, more importantly, there has been a cultural consideration in the development of this website, which allows patients to find recipes from their own culture and ways to prepare them. My hope is this recipe finder continues to grow for patients to realize how many meal options they might have within their own culture.
Many of the recipes can not only play a role in a Hispanic IBD patient’s meals, but they can be incorporated into meal plans the whole family can enjoy. More importantly, with a greater understanding of IBD specific foods that are beneficial in reducing inflammation, these customizations can be brought back as shared meals at family gatherings. This not only maintains the traditions of the family and food culture of Hispanics and Latinos, but opens up the conversation around IBD in a way that is relatable and comfortable.
[ad_2]
