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The importance of food in Asian culture
Chinese and Western food culture
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The Asian food diet is among one of the healthiest cultural diets in the world. A majority of their meals consist of fresh fruits, vegetables, and rice. As far as meats go, people of the Asian culture do not typically eat as much as other cultures, however when they do eat meat it is usually fish. Food is prepared stir-fried, deep fried, steamed, or just plain raw. Meats are rarely the main dish in any of their meals and are more of a side dish. In most of the Asian cultures there diet revolves around there religion. (Asi1) If eating a certain food stands against the religious practices of a person then they will not eat that certain food, much in the same way as Jewish persons will not eat pork due to religion. Asian diets are made up of three different groups, those being China, Korea, and Japan. All Chinese food is considered to be East Asian food. In china there are three regional cuisines, which are cantorese, chaozho, and sphanghainese. Chaozho and Cantorese regions are known for their vegetable and meat recipes and Shandong areas use foods like noodles and dumplings as a gui...
According to Hinduism, the religion most common in this country, believe that killing animals is inhumane and is unfair to the creature, thus there are not many meats that available for the people, except in some certain areas. Despite this fact, meat alternatives are very popular in India for these people being able to get protein and healthy fats while still being able to follow the guidelines of their religion. The prices of lentils, especially are cheap there as many poor and middle class families rely on these types of foods. Some examples of these types of lentils or culturally known as, daal, are moong, urad, masoor, and chana daal. Moreover, India is one of the major importers of lentils from Canada surprisingly, spending on average $1.1 billion dollars. As this Asian nation is already drowned in substantial amounts of debt, having many of its citizens buying all the lentils can ensure them that they are making profit of these foods. Thus, through the food guide, they want to encourage Indians to continue to buy this item buy making the protein a section of the food guide, rather than nothing or a very small portion. Moving on, in Canada, meat and alternatives are a small portion of the food guide because an individual does not need a lot of it to maintain a healthy body. Also, in many western countries like Canada, fast food meals have become very popular and are being eaten in enormous quantities, raising the number of obese, diabetic and individuals with heart related problems. Therefore, in the food guide it addresses Canadians to have small servings of meat when cooking themselves, to ensure that none or merely a few people are overeating
Escape from the Western Diet, by Michael Pollen, is about the argument of what is best for people to consume in order to avoid certain ailments caused by what they eat. There are many who believe certain factors such as eating too much fat or refined carbohydrates or missing certain nutrients are to blame for the poor state of health of westerners. The reason for that is that it provides for a quick easy answer to dieting issues. The author believes that all these things may have some contribution to poor health but the overall nemesis is the western diet itself.
Cantonese influence comes from Guangdong, southern part of China nearby Hong Kong and Macau geographically. Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. Due in part to its closeness to the China Sea, a lot of the ingredients used in Cantonese cuisine is fresh seafood.
Yarova LA, Krassen Covan E, Fugate-Whitlock E. Effect of Acculturation and Health Beliefs on Utilization of Health Care Services by Elderly Women Who Immigrated to the USA From the Former Soviet Union. Health Care for Women International. 2013;34(12):1097-115.
Just like any other religion they avoided overeating and unhealthy food. People in Sikh religion follow stricken vegetarian diet, as they believe non-vegetarian is spiritually harmful. They believed eating meat causes distraction during meditation and concentration. Meditation is a necessity of Sikhism. People who took an oath to become Sikh for rest of their life, don’ t eat outside, as they believe in-home cooked food. These values started with village people who grow most of the things at home.
The Western Diet mainly consists of fried foods, refined grains, sugar, high carbohydrate and fats, and meats (3). It has been hypothesized that having a Western Diet increases one’s chances for developing depression. There has been a great deal of research into why the western diet increase’s one chance of having depression. A common sense reason maybe that the Western Diet consisted of large amounts carbohydrates, fats and sugars which promotes obesity and then causes depression (1). More scientific evidence suggest that having a improper diet like the Western Diet negatively affects peripheral and central dopamine, which are neurotransmitters (chemical which transmit signals across the synapse from the nerve cell to the target cell) directly linked to the mental health of the brain and are negatively affected by high fat diets (4). Research has also suggested that having a poor nutrition status such as lacking folate (a natural water form of vitamin bg which is crucial for many of the bodies processes) and key vitamins like vitamin b12 significantly increases the risk of depression in elderly people (5). Research into the topic of dietary habits and mental health is very crucial with the growing rates of obesity and depression in the United States compared to the rest of the world. Thus, does having poor dietary habits increase the likelihood of having depression? The likelihood of developing depression has been linked to the type of diet one consumes such as the Western Diet, Diets Low in Fat and Carbohydrates and weight control diets like binge eating.
One of the most unhealthy diets in the world is that of an American. It is made up of processed foods and a good amount of television. America easily has the most fast food restaurants in the entire world. Leave it to McDonald’s, Wendy’s, Burger King or any other fast-food restaurant to serve extremely cheap and even unhealthier food at any time during the day or night. ”It tastes good so why not?” That seems to be the question many people are asking now-a-days. Because it is so easily accessible and processed, it is made to be very tasty and extremely unhealthy. Many Americans find his or herself indulging on the these fatty foods of America on a day-to-day basis. While it may taste good at the time, it has a terrible effect on your body on a long-term basis. Eat it regularly, and it becomes a nasty and deadly habit and can cause heart failure, Type 2 Diabetes, high cholesterol, high-blood pressure, and many other life threatening complications to the body. The American diet has a numerous amount of pitfalls and disgusting habits. The American diet is one of the worst diets because of its portions, processed foods, and how it is very cheap, but the American diet can be overcome with determination, a healthy diet, and an exercise routine.
The typical diet of the average Japanese citizen is much healthier than that of an average American citizen. The Japanese diet is vastly different than the common western diet in terms of ingredients used, portion size, preparation, and relationship between its users and their food. While Americans commonly opt for unhealthy food high in calories, fat, cholesterol, and sodium, many people of Japan benefit from their healthy choice of rice, fish, vegetables, and soy products. The Japanese style of preparing and serving food is also very intricate and deliberate, which encourages diners to truly appreciate their food, instead of rushing through each meal without much thought, as done in the United States. The typical Japanese diet offers its users increased immunity and can help prevent against some cancers, heart and cardiovascular diseases, and diabetes, among other illnessesi. The diet typically followed in the United States is grossly opposite in that many commonly consumed unhealthy foods have been determined to actually cause the same diseases that the Japanese diet works against, including but not limited to heart disease, some cancer, and diabetes.
I was born in one of the countries in Asia, and our staple food is rice. Rice is always at the center of the table, and the rest of the viand surrounds it. Here in the United States, my household still eat rice every day, accompanied by cooked vegetables and meat. My food choices are influenced by culture and family. Vegetables and fruits of my choice are abundant at the International Market and other Asian grocery stores. Vegetables are also available for a cheaper price at the farmers market. I myself buy these foods to ensure its freshness, prepare and cook them for my entire family. Inspired by Asian and American cuisine, our food is prepared with variety of cooking styles; such as dry like barbecues, baked and fried, with sauce
Most Americans do not care enough to take a look at the nutritional values of the food that he or she is consuming. That is why America has the highest percentage of obesity in the world. This is a serious problem because one in every three adults is obese, and one in every six children is obese. There are many factors that go into the regular American diet, but most of those factors are not appealing nor is it healthy. Americans put way too much processed food into their daily diet. Some would say that other countries diets superior the American diet because of nutritional values that it carries. Other countries have proven that an active lifestyle is a huge element in the average weight of the country. There are many things that Americans could change about their diets and lifestyle that would help them to become healthier.
China has an area of 9.6 million square kilometers and a coastline of 18,000 kilometers (Network Center of MOFCOM, 2004). It has a population of 1,401,586,609 people as of 2015 (Worldometers, 2015). In China, they tend to eat a lot of the same foods. Some of the local food consists of rice, noodles, fish, vegetables and meats (Parkinson, 2011). “China is described as a collectivist country because it “emphasizes the needs and goals of the group as a whole over the needs and wishes of each individual ().”
Vietnam has variety types of food for every occasion, from an everyday meal to New Year’s festivities food. The flavor of the Vietnamese food varies from sweet, sour, salty, and spicy. However, rice, the mainstay of the Vietnamese diet, is grown throughout the country but particularly in the Red River delta in the north and Mekong River delta in the south. As Vietnam’s population started to increases, farmers had to produce quicker as well; making Vietnam the third country to produce the most rice. In fact, the Vietnamese people say that their country resembles a bamboo pole (the narrow central region) with a basket of rice at each end.(Food in Vietnam) Rice is eaten almost every day in the Vietnamese diet. Even though three-fourths of country is either a hill or mountain, the long waterway along the country provides a small variety of seafood like fish or shrimp.
Anyone can agree that cultures vary significantly. Anywhere from society views, to genetics, and even food! The eating habits of all the different cultures in the world are one of the most significant changes between nations and cultures to other nations and cultures. Anywhere in the world will have different eating habits, for example, Americans eat small meals throughout the day and then indulge in a big filling meal for supper, while in Mexico, breakfast tends to be the biggest meal of the day. Now, because of these changes in cultural views, anthropology is very much involved. This is why I am going to go in depth on the eating habits from four different cultures: Japanese, Mexican, and American.
The Chinese culture is one of the most popular cultures in the world today and it has been around for a very long time. The Chinese people are known for their eloquent ceremonies and customary behaviors in the society throughout the world. They are known for their distinctive cultures, which include art and crafts, calligraphy, embroidery, and operas. Another part of Chinese culture that has been enjoying attention worldwide is the Kung Fu, and it has been an integral part of the Chinese culture for ages. The Chinese food, of course is another interesting piece of culture they exhibit as their food is sold around the world, they are very nutritious and healthy.
When thinking about food, Americans do not necessarily consider the origin of the country that food was made in or its ingredients. Often disregarded, the culture of Asian food goes amiss in American appropriation of Asian food. Asian cuisines can easily represent the power of its country, thus, are useful tools for education in Asian culture. In America, many people experience variety of food choices of Asian food such as Chinese, Japanese, and Korean.