Spreading the Gospel of Healthy Eating in the Delta

Posted By elissa on Sep 2, 2011 | 1 comment

As this NPR article succinctly describes it, Mississippi is “ground zero” in the fight against obesity-related health issues: type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease. As the author also notes, the problem is particularly acute in the Mississippi Delta.

“We have a culture of easy living, good eating with fatback and lard and things like that. We like to sit on our porch, and we like our adult beverages, we like our fellowship and that kind of thing,” Holland says. “And when you put all that together over generations, you’ve got a bad health problem.”

This is why I thought this New York Times article, on the efforts of Reverend Michael O. Minor, was awesome. Not only is he (finally) experiencing success in helping his Delta parishoners improve their diets; he’s created a template that’s being adopted by the National Baptist Convention!

The signs of change in the Delta may be most noticeable because they are the most hard-fought.

A sign in the kitchen of First Baptist Church in Clarksdale declares it a “No Fry Zone.” Bel Mount Missionary Baptist Church in the sleepy hamlet of Marks just had its first Taste Test Sunday, where the women of the church put out a spread of healthier foods, like sugar-free apple pie, to convince members that healthy cuisine does not have to taste like old tires.

Carved out of the fields behind Seek Well Baptist Church in the tiny town of Lula is a new community garden. The pastor, the Rev. Kevin Wiley, is even thinking about becoming a vegetarian, a sort of person he says he has never met in the Delta.

Many pastors tell the same story: They started worrying about their own health, but were motivated to push their congregations by the campaign that began in Mr. Minor’s church.

…At Oak Hill now, as in several other churches around the Delta, fried foods are banned. Greens are boiled with turkey necks instead of ham hocks. Sweet tea and soft drinks have given way to bottled water. A track was built around the church for organized walks, which members say are pretty well attended.

Check out this NPR interview with Rev. Minor here. I especially like his attitude about exercise:

ROBERTS: And what about the exercise side of the equation? Are you able to address that?

MINOR: Oh, yes. You know, the thing about it is people want to get all these exercise bikes and treadmills. Find things you normally do. I cut grass. And so instead of getting a riding mower, I have a push mower. I do that about every five days, and I get in the yard and do yard work, and that’s exercise. Or try to walk in a park, in the – when I go somewhere, I park on the other side of the parking lot to give me extra steps in. So exercise is all about how you can do things, because we all are busy. Come on. We have full days. Try to find something in which you exercise, tied into your normal routine.

Sure – I’m a big fan of hitting the gym. But – when it comes to basic health/wellness, it’s even more important to work moderate physical activity into your schedule throughout the day. To my mind, mowing your lawn or walking on errands are a lot more productive – and a lot less boring – than (literally) spinning your wheels on an exercise bike.

So here’s to Reverend Minor! We need more leaders like him – IMHO, grassroots efforts are far more likely to succeed than top-down initiatives.