Due to its centrality in human activities, food is a meaningful object that necessarily participates in any cultural, social and ideological construction and its qualification as 'traditional' is a politically laden value. This book demonstrates that traditionality as attributed to foods goes beyond the notions of heritage and authenticity under which it is commonly formulated. Through a series of case studies from a global range of cultural and geographical areas, the book explores a variety of contexts to reveal the complexity behind the attribution of the term 'traditional' to food. In particular, the volume demonstrates that the definitions put forward by programmes such as TRUEFOOD and EuroFIR (and subsequently adopted by organisations including FAO), which have analysed the perception of traditional foods by individuals, do not adequately reflect this complexity. The concept of tradition being deeply ingrained culturally, socially, politically and ideologically, traditional foods resist any single definition. Chapters analyse the processes of valorisation, instrumentalisation and reinvention at stake in the construction and representation of a food as traditional. Overall the book offers fresh perspectives on topics including definition and regulation, nationalism and identity, and health and nutrition, and will be of interest to students and researchers of many disciplines including anthropology, sociology, politics and cultural studies.

Discover neglected wild food sources—that can also be used as medicine! The long-standing notion of “food as medicine, medicine as food,” can be traced back to Hippocrates. Eating and Healing: Traditional Food As Medicine is a global overview of wild and semi-domesticated foods and their use as medicine in traditional societies. Important cultural information, along with extensive case studies, provides a clear, authoritative look at the many neglected food sources still being used around the world today. This book bridges the scientific disciplines of medicine, food science, human ecology, and environmental sciences with their ethno-scientific counterparts of ethnobotany, ethnoecology, and ethnomedicine to provide a valuable multidisciplinary resource for education and instruction. Eating and Healing: Traditional Food As Medicine presents respected researchers’ in-depth case studies on foods different cultures use as medicines and as remedies for nutritional deficiencies in diet. Comparisons of living conditions in different geographic areas as well as differences in diet and medicines are thoroughly discussed and empirically evaluated to provide scientific evidence of the many uses of these traditional foods as medicine and as functional foods. The case studies focus on the uses of plants, seaweed, mushrooms, and fish within their cultural contexts while showing the dietary and medical importance of these foods. The book provides comprehensive tables, extensive references, useful photographs, and helpful illustrations to provide clear scientific support as well as opportunities for further thought and study. Eating and Healing: Traditional Food As Medicine explores the ethnobiology of: Tibet—antioxidants as mediators of high-altitude nutritional physiology Northeast Thailand—“wild” food plant gathering Southern Italy—the consumption of wild plants by Albanians and Italians Northern Spain—medicinal digestive beverages United States—medicinal herb quality Commonwealth of Dominica—humoral medicine and food Cuba—promoting health through medicinal foods Brazil—medicinal uses of specific fishes Brazil—plants from the Amazon and Atlantic Forest Bolivian Andes—traditional food medicines New Patagonia—gathering of wild plant foods with medicinal uses Western Kenya—uses of traditional herbs among the Luo people South Cameroon—ethnomycology in Africa Morocco—food medicine and ethnopharmacology Eating and Healing: Traditional Food As Medicine is an essential research guide and educational text about food and medicine in traditional societies for educators, students from undergraduate through graduate levels, botanists, and research specialists in nutrition and food science, anthropology, agriculture, ethnoecology, ethnobotany, and ethnobiology.

One of the Best Health and Wellness Books of 2017 — Sports Illustrated A self-published phenomenon examining the habits that kept our ancestors disease-free—now with a prescriptive plan for “The Human Diet” to help us all live long, vital, healthy lives. Physician and biochemist Cate Shanahan, M.D. examined diets around the world known to help people live longer, healthier lives—diets like the Mediterranean, Okinawa, and “Blue Zone”—and identified the four common nutritional habits, developed over millennia, that unfailingly produce strong, healthy, intelligent children, and active, vital elders, generation after generation. These four nutritional strategies—fresh food, fermented and sprouted foods, meat cooked on the bone, and organ meats—form the basis of what Dr. Cate calls “The Human Diet.” Rooted in her experience as an elite athlete who used traditional foods to cure her own debilitating injuries, and combining her research with the latest discoveries in the field of epigenetics, Dr. Cate shows how all calories are not created equal; food is information that directs our cellular growth. Our family history does not determine our destiny: what you eat and how you live can alter your DNA in ways that affect your health and the health of your future children. Deep Nutrition offers a prescriptive plan for how anyone can begin eating The Human Diet to: *Improve mood *Eliminate cravings and the need to snack *Boost fertility and have healthier children *Sharpen cognition and memory *Eliminate allergies and disease *Build stronger bones and joints *Get younger, smoother skin Deep Nutrition cuts through today’s culture of conflicting nutritional ideologies, showing how the habits of our ancestors can help us lead longer, healthier, more vital lives.

Due to its centrality in human activities, food is a meaningful object that necessarily participates in any cultural, social and ideological construction and its qualification as 'traditional' is a politically laden value. This book demonstrates that traditionality as attributed to foods goes beyond the notions of heritage and authenticity under which it is commonly formulated. Through a series of case studies from a global range of cultural and geographical areas, the book explores a variety of contexts to reveal the complexity behind the attribution of the term 'traditional' to food. In particular, the volume demonstrates that the definitions put forward by programmes such as TRUEFOOD and EuroFIR (and subsequently adopted by organisations including FAO), which have analysed the perception of traditional foods by individuals, do not adequately reflect this complexity. The concept of tradition being deeply ingrained culturally, socially, politically and ideologically, traditional foods resist any single definition. Chapters analyse the processes of valorisation, instrumentalisation and reinvention at stake in the construction and representation of a food as traditional. Overall the book offers fresh perspectives on topics including definition and regulation, nationalism and identity, and health and nutrition, and will be of interest to students and researchers of many disciplines including anthropology, sociology, politics and cultural studies.

"Between Mecca and Beijing" examines how a community of urban Chinese Muslims uses consumption to position its members more favorably within the Chinese government's official paradigm for development. Residents of the old Muslim district in the ancient Chinese capital of Xi'an belong to an official minority (the Hui nationality) that has been classified by the state as "backward" in comparison to China's majority (Han) population. Though these Hui urbanites, like the vast majority of Chinese citizens, accept the assumptions about social evolution upon which such labels are based, they actively reject the official characterization of themselves as less civilized and modern than the Han majority. By selectively consuming goods and adopting fashions they regard as modern and non-Chinese--which include commodities and styles from both the West and the Muslim world--these Chinese Muslims seek to demonstrate that they are capable of modernizing without the guidance or assistance of the state. In so doing, they challenge one of the fundamental roles the Chinese Communist government has claimed for itself, that of guide and purveyor of modernity. Through a detailed study of the daily life--eating habits, dress styles, housing, marriage and death rituals, religious practices, education, family organization--of the Hui inhabitants of Xi'an, the author explores the effects of a state-sponsored ideology of progress on an urban Chinese Muslim neighborhood.

Nutrition: Science and Applications, 3rd Canadian Edition, provides students with a strong foundational knowledge of human nutrition, covering all essential nutrients, their functions in the body, and their sources and dietary components. Presenting an innovative critical-thinking approach to the subject, this leading textbook goes beyond the basics to explore underlying nutrition processes while discussing the latest research, debates, and controversies related to nutrition and health. The text offers an accessible, visually-rich presentation of topics designed to be highly relevant and relatable to Canadian readers. The ideal text for college-level nutrition courses, this new edition features extensively revised and updated content throughout — aligning with the latest nutrition research, recommendations, guidelines, and Canadian government regulations. The authors real-world approach enables students to apply concepts of nutrition science in their own lives as consumers, and in their future careers as scientists and health professionals. Balanced coverage of fundamental nutrition topics integrates with comprehensive discussion of nutrient metabolism, health and disease relationships, dietary patterns, Canadian and global nutrition issues, and much more.

Nutritional and Health Aspects of Food in the Balkans s introduces and analyzes traditional foods from the Balkans. Beginning with the eating habits in Balkans, this book unfolds the history of use, origin, compositions and preparation, ingredient origin, nutritional aspects, and the effects on health for various foods and food products of the region. Nutritional and Health Aspects of Food in the Balkans also addresses local and international regulations and provides suggestions on how to harmonize these regulations to promote global availability of these foods. A volume in a series co-produced with Global Harmonization Initiative, Nutritional and Health Aspects of Food in the Balkans is sure to be a welcomed reference for nutrition researchers and professionals, including nutritionists, dieticians, food scientists, food technologists, toxicologists, regulators, and product developers as well as educators, and students. Analyzes nutritional and health claims in the Balkan region Includes traditional foods from the Balkans Explores both scientific and anecdotal diet-based health claims Examines if foods meet regulatory requirements and how to remedy noncompliance Reviews the influence of historical eating habits on today’s diets

Abstract: A sociological approach to the development of eating patterns is based on documented ethnocultural traditions of more than 100 ethnic groups, comprising 52 main groups. Each chapter focuses on one main group, describing the sociocultural background, home life and facilities, traditional dietary preferences by food category, and special occasions including symbolism and religion. Most chapters also describe meal patterns and unique characteristics of hospitality; a few include methods of cooking and regional specialties if they are significantly different. Some of the smaller homogeneous groups, such as the Finns or Armenians, or the very large heterogeneous groups such as Americans can be described in a few pages; others, such as the Italians and Jews, are so diverse in their habits and contributions that a more detailed description is necessary.