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Born City: 'Ngwaci', 'Nduma' gave us energy to play 'Shake'

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Healthy diet in Kenyan Youth
 A picture of children playing   Photo:imageck.com

My belief that the generation we are bringing up in Kenya is unhealthy was justified after my one-month stay in Tanzania. Having visited other East African countries before cement it even more.

We are really abusing the concept of fast foods and it not surprising new fast food joints are mushrooming at every corner each day. My son Luambo would be confused if you  gave him obambla, mushrooms (obwoba), mrenda, omena and other traditional foods that kept us healthy in all the years Moi was president.

I remember my mother preparing these foods with a smile on her face as we salivated. Githeri was a regular feature in our home. Some of us only interacted with cereals, sausages and other components of the English breakfast, once a year- on Christmas day. We grew up as healthy and hardy kids because of the staple of meals like cassava, ugali ngwaci, and nduma. We were very fit to go through physical games like ‘rounders,’ kati, ‘shake,’ football and for a whole day without panting.

The more than a few scratches and bruises couldn’t deter us either. I was impressed when I got some of these traditional foods in Tanzania. Free range chicken in the country is a common dish that is served in nearly all restaurants. In Kenya, the dot com generation would not go out of their way to try and sample this delicacy. As a result, traditionally foods are ironically expensive in Kenya.

Our youth are dying, just as they’re about to grow college moustache  because parents are not exposing them to healthy foods. It was unheard of, in the ‘80s and ‘90s, to suffer from diseases like high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol and other lifestyle ailments that were mistakenly referred to as ‘rich man’s disease.’

In medical school I recall a colleague who diagnosed an African patient with high blood pressure and odiero doctors said it was impossible. But then again, our traditional foods and lifestyles significantly reduced the chances of suffering from such ailments. For instance, a family would use a tin of margarine for a whole month. There was no wastage and a very modest amount was spread on bread.

These days, margarine is used in abundance. In our time, it was believed that too much margarine was fattening, and nobody wanted to be the fatso who was bullied by everyone. Whenever I am in Uganda, I relish a meal that is served with  groundnut soup.

Even in restaurants, you will be able to get a generous portion with no less than five different traditional foods. In fact, a Ugandan friend has an insightful take on the matter. He says we should not blame alcohol for our young men’s inability to peperusha bendera in bed. He strongly believes that what we eat could also be a reason for the poor performance.

That got me thinking, since many a time, I have seen young married men who drink almost daily stop by fast food joints to devour chips and chicken. Surely, how do you expect such a man to perform when occasion demands? It’s no wonder our women go bonkers when they meet our West African brothers.

I urge the Ministry of Health, for the sake of future generations, to roll out a campaign to promote and create awareness on healthy food. There is no need to go to the gym then troop back to unhealthy foods after a workout. Ever wondered why our life expectancy has dropped significantly? It is what we eat. This has seen the cost of healthcare skyrocket and may soon impact the government big time, now that it is implementing an initiative that will see all civil servants benefit from medical insurance.

 

[email protected]

@AineaOjiambo

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