Transcript Energy - Food a fact of life

Ethnic foods and ethnic diets
Georgine Leung
Nutrition Scientist
British Nutrition Foundation
© Food – a fact of life 2011
What are ethnic foods?
• Wide range of definitions
• All non-European cuisines and covers all
commercially available products:
–
–
–
–
–
ready meals;
cooking and table sauces;
accompaniments and snacks;
meal kits;
seasonings (powder, spices etc.).
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Presence of ethnic foods in the UK
• First introduced by early migrants in the 19th Century.
• Growing immigrant and expatriate populations.
• Increased travels to Asia, the Far East and the
Caribbean.
• Globalisation of the food market.
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Market trends
UK retail sales of ethnic foods in 2008, by cuisine
(Mintel, 2009)
What is the dominant cuisine of ethnic foods?
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Mode of consumption
Ready meals
48%
Retail sales of ethnic foods, by
type in 2008 (Mintel 2009)
What is the most popular way of consuming ethnic foods?
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Characteristics of consumers
• Men > women
• 25 to 44 years old
• More likely to have young children
• Higher socioeconomic status
• Mostly from London
(Mintel 2009)
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Emerging issues in ethnic foods
• Health and nutrition
• Ethics and animal welfare
• Cost
• Authenticity
• Communication and promotion
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Emerging issues in ethnic foods
• Health and nutrition
- using of lower fat alternatives;
- replacing fats and oils high in saturates;
- cutting down on salt;
- adding extra vegetables (as whole or purée);
- adopting healthier cooking methods.
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Emerging issues in ethnic foods
• Ethics and animal welfare
- Halal and Kosher foods
• Cost
• Authenticity
- starter kits;
- develop new products and flavours;
- latest travel destinations for local cuisines.
• Communication and promotion
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Minority ethnic groups in the UK
• Made up 7.9% of the UK population in 2001.
• Tend to concentrate in specific areas and big cities.
• Some ethnic and religious groups are closely
related.
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(both adapted from Office for National Statistics 2005)
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Minority ethnic groups in the UK
South Asians
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Black African-Caribbeans
Chinese
Health profiles
Some groups have shown higher rates of coronary
heart disease, stroke, Type 2 diabetes and central
obesity (Health Survey for England 2004).
Certain disease risks may be tracked from childhood.
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Cardiovascular disease (CVD)
Men and women from Indian, Pakistani and
Bangladeshi groups were more likely to suffer from
CHD compared with the general population (30% to
140% higher for men and around 50% to 90% higher for
women).
Black African respondents had the lowest risk, while
the Chinese and Black Caribbeans also had lower risks
than the mainstream population.
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People of African-Caribbean ethnicity are 6-7x more
likely to suffer from stroke compared with the general
population. South Asian and Chinese groups were
also more likely to suffer from stroke than the
mainstream population.
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Prevalence of type 2 diabetes
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(adapted from Mindell & Zaninotto 2006)
Obesity rates and cut-off points
International BMI cut-off points for
overweight and obesity are 25kg/m2
and 30kg/m2 respectively.
Asians have been found to have a
higher amount of body fat compared
with the White population at the same
BMI.
Suggested lower cut-off points for
overweight and obesity to be 23kg/m2
and 27.5kg/m2 respectively.
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Obesity rates using different measurements
© British Nutrition Foundation 2011
Hirani & Stamatakis 2006
Health profiles
Possible reasons for health inequalities:
1. Genetic predisposition.
2. Developmental programming.
3. Health behaviour patterns.
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Health behaviour patterns
• Minority ethnic groups have found to be more
physically inactive and more likely to smoke.
• Dietary patterns and nutrient status:
> Higher fruit and vegetable intakes.
> Higher salt intakes (also in weaning).
> More likely to breastfeed but later onset of
weaning.
> Lower iron and vitamin D status.
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Traditional diets of minority ethnic groups
South Asians
African-Caribbeans
Chinese
 Various types of bread
and rice
 Rice, plantains, cassava,
yams and potatoes
 Noodles, buns and rice
 Vegetables, beans and
pulses (dhals), meat or
seafood in a curry
 A wide range of herbs
and spices for flavouring
 Foods commonly eaten
also vary by season and
between those from
different regions and
religious groups
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 Various vegetables with
meat or fish dishes
 Tropical fruits
 Common snacks, e.g.
beef patties, salt fish
fritters and fried
dumplings
 Important to
understanding the
terminology used in
different sub-groups
 Lots of green, leafy
vegetables and funfaltype vegetables
 Reliance on soy milk and
soy products
 Variety of fruits
 Differences between
types of foods consumed
and cooking styles
 Special occasion foods
Factors affecting food choice
• Income and socio-economic status
• Food availability and access
• Awareness of healthy eating
• Time and cooking skills
• Generation and gender
• Religious beliefs
• Food beliefs
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A guide to religious and cultural influences on diet
Food/ drink
Muslims
Hindus
Sikhs
Seventh-day
Adventist
Church
Rastafari
Movement
Buddhists
Eggs




 (to some)
 (to some)
Milk and
yogurt
 (to some)
 (to some)


 (to some)

Cheese
 (not with
rennet)
(not with
rennet)
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
 (to some)

Pork

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
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
 (to some)
Beef
 Halal only*
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

 (to some)
Lamb
 Halal only*
 (to some)
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

 (to some)
Chicken
 Halal only*
 (to some)
 (to some)


 (to some)
Fish
 (with fins
and scales)
 (with fins
and scales)
 (to some)
 (with fins
and scales)

 (to some)
Alcohol






Fasting
Ramadan: no
food or liquid
from sunrise to
sunset
On special
occasions to
personal Gods
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(adapted from de Wet et al. 1995)
Food beliefs
For example, Chinese communities also consider
balancing the ‘yin’ (coldness) and ‘yang’ (hotness) of
the body as particularly important.
Yin or yang?
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Key characteristics to successful
nutritional interventions
• tailoring interventions to specific minority ethnic groups;
• understanding the lifestyles of different minority ethnic groups and
targeting sub-groups;
• recognising the relationships between individuals, families and
households;
• reinforcing changes in knowledge, behaviours and attitudes by
using a variety of activities;
• involving a trusted and recognised community worker health
professionals from the same ethnic background;
• using approaches such as community development and peer
education which have proven relatively successful.
(adapted from Stockley 2009)
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Supporting resources
Video podcast available on our Youtube channel:
www.youtube.com/britishnutrition
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Further reading
Ethnic foods in the UK
Leung G (2010) Nutrition Bulletin 35:226-234.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.14673010.2010.01840.x/abstract
Diets of minority ethnic groups in the UK: influence on chronic
disease risk and implications for prevention
Leung G and Stanner S (2011) Nutriton Bulletin 36:161-198
Email: [email protected]
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For further information, go to:
www.nutrition.org.uk
www.foodafactoflife.org.uk
© Food – a fact of life 2011