Abstract
Background
Epidemiological studies have described an “acculturation paradox.” Increased acculturation
to the United States is associated with increased consumption of dietary fat and decreased
consumption of fruits/vegetables.
Objective
To expand understanding of the dietary acculturation paradox, this study examined
how bicultural Mexican-American women construct ethnic identity and how these identities
and identity-making processes relate to perceptions of health and nutrition.
Design
We utilized embedded mixed methods (in-depth interviews; survey).
Participants/setting
We analyzed a purposive sample of English-speaking Mexican-American women aged 18
to 29 years (n=24) in rural California to assess ethnic identity and diet beliefs.
Results
Participants described food as central to expressing cultural identity, usually in
terms of family interactions. Mexican food traditions were characterized as unhealthy;
many preferred American foods, which were seen as healthier. Specifically, Mexican-American
women perceived Mexican patterns of food preparation and consumption as unhealthy.
In addition, traditional Mexican foods described as unhealthy were once considered
special-occasion foods. Among the participants who expressed a desire to eat healthfully,
to do so meant to reject Mexican ways of eating.
Conclusions
This study raises questions about the nature of the “dietary acculturation paradox.”
While food—the eating of Mexican foods—is central to the maintenance of ethnic identity
throughout acculturation, negative perceptions about the healthfulness of Mexican
foods introduce tension into Mexican-American women’s self-identification. This study
suggests a subtle contradiction that may help to explain the dietary acculturation
paradox: While previous research has suggested that as Mexicans acculturate to the
United States they adopt unhealthy diets, this study finds evidence that they do so
at least in part due to perceptions that American diets are healthier than Mexican
diets. Implications for interventions to improve Latinos’ diets include an emphasis
on the family and use of Spanish linguistic cues. Finally, messages that simply advocate
for “traditional” diets should be reconsidered because that message is discordant
with perceptions of the healthfulness of such foods.
Keywords
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Biography
A. S. Ramírez is an assistant professor, School of Social Sciences, Humanities, and Arts, University of California, Merced, California.
Biography
T. Golash-Boza is a professor, School of Social Sciences, Humanities, and Arts, University of California, Merced, California.
Biography
J. B. Unger is a professor, Institute for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Research, University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California.
Biography
L. Baezconde-Garbanati is a professor, Institute for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Research, University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California.
Article Info
Publication History
Published online: December 28, 2017
Accepted:
October 11,
2017
Received:
May 8,
2017
Footnotes
STATEMENT OF POTENTIAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
FUNDING/SUPPORT This study was supported by the National Cancer Institute under Award No. K01CA190659. Content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
Identification
Copyright
© 2018 by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
