Staying healthy with an immune-challenged body

There are many articles and diets today aimed at helping us gain, lose, trim, reduce cholesterol and others, that affect our weight and heart.

But what about those who aside from the latter, have to navigate the issue of keeping their immune system boosted, navigate medications and the side-affects, aside from eating a recommended nutritious diet?

In understanding how best to treat someone, we need to understand the social factors and context surrounding each person. Looking at the lifestyle includes a broader insight into race, gender, income level, shopping habits, rural /city living, class, and other factors. People interpret their experiences of illness and health differently, and this can lead to some taking one course of action and others acting in a more apathetic or procrastinating manner. Again we can look at race, gender, age group, culture, and ethnicity to create circumstances that surround choice.

In South Africa if we look at a local city like Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape, one can see how the above factors play a vital role in the way health-related issues arise. On the one hand, you have areas that could be considered ‘first world’ with all the facilities and standards that you would expect in a European City. Supermarkets with clean filled shelves of freshly supplied fruit and vegetables, canned or dried goods and luxuries like chocolate and wine. Then you could travel a few kilometers down the road and see a township where unlike the supermarket, these are ‘home-stores’ that are situated in different parts of the village to sell goods that are based on income levels. Meat might not be totally fresh and limited in choice, maize and related corn or rice bulked products are sold as the basis for all meals. Shopping here is not based on what you would like, but need, how much can you get out of your salary to feed you and your family over a period of time, say a week.

Many of the factors in South Africa that govern health-related issues arise from a black culture that has been poorly educated in nutrition, sees food as a necessity, not as a pleasure, and enjoys sugar-based treats and maize-based snacks as an in-between snack. This is not uncommon even in western society, where parents will use crisps to satiate a child’s hunger between meals. It’s a poor alternative to a crispy apple which has many essential benefits, to a snack offering no nutritious factors. And in that child later on in life, due to reliance on that high sodium and non-saturated fat snacks of diabetes or heart disease.

Still there is a large portion of society in many countries that are not aware of what food manufacturers use to ‘bulk-up’ products to meet the expectations of the consumer in size, color, weight, etc. and for the manufacturer to improve profit through cheaper basic raw materials.

Over the years we have seen the use of corn-based products used as syrups, starches, and powder to increase the bulk and sweetness of products. Take a look at `yogurt’ It’s a simple enough product made from milk, yet it contains starch and often gelatine to give that thick creamy texture. ‘Real yogurt’ is a lot runnier, its consistency is not appealing to the consumer; and therefore would not sell as well.