Wednesday, April 14, 2010

African American Child-Women: Nutrition Theory Revised

All right (hehe @ Justine Dell),

As advertised, I found a research study conducted by Medha Talpade that investigates early sexual maturation in African American females and connects it to nutrition. 



The first thing I will say is that there are, as with any primary research, some drawbacks to this study. There are moments while I was reading the methods section of the research report that I thought, "Ya know, that seems a bit...fishy." As in, there could be a lot of skewed evidence here based on methodology. So, I will present the research findings but ask you to check it out yourself before you decide that what is presented here is absolute fact. Anyway, I would encourage you to do that in general. In fact, I would encourage you to be cautious to EVER label anything Absolute FACT (except God, who is, indeed, a fact). Still, the information provided at least raises questions and provides evidence that the SAD is pretty awful for human bodies. 

So, what is this study all about? Talpade wanted to find out if nutrition in early life affected sexual maturation. Early sexual maturation is "associated with myriad psychological and behavioral problems" (2). "Increasing research evidence indicates that there are psychiatric risks for girls who enter sexual maturation at an early age" (3). Indeed, the NHANES III found that obesity was linked to psychological and emotional dysfunction. Preliminary findings suggested that today, AA girls eat significantly different than a generation ago and this newer study found that there are significant differences in nutrition between AA girls who mature early and those who do not. 

The study found lower calcium and fiber consumption related to early sexual maturation. 

So, basically, African American children (as well as any child/ren) need to make sure they are getting a great deal of calcium and fiber--especially if being raised raw. While most raw foodists will claim that the raw food lifestyle can provide plenty of essential vitamins and minerals/proteins, it is very important to make sure kids are getting the RIGHT amount they need of the right kinds. Perhaps consider blood tests and perhaps a supplement if you are afraid your kids are not getting the right amount of fiber and calcium!



Here also is more information regarding African American health and nutrition: http://www.faqs.org/nutrition/A-Ap/African-Americans-Diet-of.html

1 comment:

JE said...

Glad you got your grammar right :-)

This post is interesting. Kara and I were discussing health related issues and race earlier at the desk today and we had quite the discussion! I'll have to tell you about it.

~JD

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