Reducing the obesity rate in Harlem, Part 1

In less than 6 month, I moved from Wheaton IL, to Harlem , NY, to Rooselvet Island ,NY...



I forgot to say I was born in Clamart ( France) and grew up in Yaounde, Cameroon ( Africa). I can stay I have been fortunate to have the opportunity to experience 3 continents so far. By the way I am 24 years old...as of january 2010
Yaounde, Cameroon: a peaceful and beautiful city, the capital of this country. Cameroon has about 20 millions of residents and Yaounde has about 1.5 millions of resident currenlty.



Foodwise? I grew up eating healthy foods, like most people in my hometown, we eat fresh food the market place and less processed food. For example, My mother would easily get a chicken alive from the market that we will " kill" at home and cook it ! the legumes, were never frozen, always fresh! We would buy bread every morning at the " boutiques" like everyone else in town...

This is the " Mfoundi" Market in the center of yaounde.
What I am trying to say is, in Yaounde, the rate of obesity is low maybe 0.1 %?! the average persons earns less than the average person in the USA but most people have access to quality , healthy, fresh, foods items. It is important to point out that because of the lifestyle there, people work from 9-5pm, weekends free, have time to go the market on weekends, and on weekdays get home and cook meals for their families, every single day and if you are part of the upper class or middle class you are more likely to afford a maid or a cook to prepare your meals for you and your family. An example of cameroonian dish:




This is called " Poulet DG" -In english " Chicken CEO" ): Maybe it is because it is sooo good that it for CEOs ! but anyways, it is made out of tomatoes, plantains, carrots, chicken, pepper, garlic, onions..ect. and it is my favorite cameroonian plate ! Yummy!



Paris, France: Most members of my family live there, my sister included. I observed her lifestyle when I was there to visit. She , like most residents in Paris, works from 9-5pm and has her weekends free. She doesn't have a maid but everyday at 7h30pm we will eat dinner at the table, dinner that she cooked. No fast food...actually dinner time took forever !!!
First, the entree ( some type of salad), then main meal, then the cheese, then the dessert.
I am used to east fast, but when I was there i spend 2 hours at the table, eating and talking...family time! The food in France are the best !
I rarely see an obese person in Paris, actually I dont remember seiing any. Even though people in Paris are always running, like in NYC, time is money...for some reason, they take their time to eat and they eat healthy foods, they usually go the fast foods, once every two weeks.
I noticed that the dinner time is part of their tradition and it is valued. French folks wacth what they eat...the calories, the nutritions facts...cholesterols, amount of sugar...ect they are so aware of these things....I think i know why ! is the Television, the media...most of the shows on national channels have programs of good diet, healthy behaviors, currents health issues...ect all day long.
I came back to NYC and asked myself when it is the last time I saw such programs on fox, nbc, abc, cw, or cbs on a regular basis? That is a whole other topic.
The rate of obesity in France is low also, my theory is that, healthy foods are affordable and cheaper than fast foods; In fast foods and restaurants, the sizes are smaller, usually no free refills on sodas, therefore there are no " To-go" boxes, it is actually " weird" to ask for one in restaurants...The system is encouraging healthy eating behaviors, why? because i think, since there is a universal healthcare system where the government is " paying" for your healthcare , they are more likely to care about your health and they make sure you eat health foods.
healthy foods are cheap, fast foods not so cheap, sizes are small ...
You are healthy, You cost less, the government is Happy.