Healthy Aging Month is celebrated annually in September. It is a month where the goal is to raise awareness regarding the positive aspects of aging and to promote ways to stay healthy. In celebration of Healthy Aging Month, United HealthCare hosted an event on Sept. 21 entitled “The Healing Power of Cultural Food” at Holman United Methodist Church in South Los Angeles.
The free health and wellness event focused on empowering African-Americans aged 60 years and over to live a more healthy life. The risk of diabetes and obesity, for instance, can increase as the body continues to age. Our Weekly spoke with Angela Ginn-Meadow, (RD, LDN, RN, CDES) and Rita Tolbert with UnitedHealthcare, who expressed their passion and enthusiasm for the development of the event. UnitedHealthcare has hosted many free events with different concepts targeted at different audiences. Tolbert says that part of the mission is to ensure that relevant information is available to various communities and to empower seniors to make the right decisions and become confident in their healthcare.
Ginn-Meadow notes that Blacks have the highest risk of pre-diabetes and diabetes. Tolbert said that an estimated 38.1 million African-Amerifans have diabetes.
“I believe you can change your disease destiny with every bite,” Ginn-Meadow said. “I really want to show that these simple ingredients have the power to really provide us nutrients to give us fuel but also to fight against hypertension, high cholesterol, and also chronic diseases, especially cancer.”
She added that maintaining Black culture includes making conscious choices about how to prepare foods, that moderation is important, and that small changes matter. For example, ingredients that are nutrient-rich and steamed, sauteed, and roasted are better cooking alternatives than choosing to fry food,
The event featured live information, a nutritionist, and a guest chef. Additionally, there was a discussion on how certain cuisine can act as a natural medicine. Attendees also learned about the nutritional and healing benefits of some traditional African-American foods, and interactive and educational sessions about Medicare.