Food and Culture notes

1. What are the basic tenets of Western and Eastern religions? The basic principles of belief in western religions are the belief in one god, strict adherence to the commandments and teachings of God, as they prepare for the afterlife. In Christianity and Islam, for instance, the notion of the afterlife is emphasized.

The traditional health beliefs and practices in the Philippines is based on a combination of facets from multiple belief systems such as the Chinese’ ying and yang, indigenous ideas on causes of illness, and modern monotheist religions. “In the Philippines health is maintained through the balance – also known as timbering – of natural and supernatural elements”2.

1. In Native American culture, what is considered the cause of illness? How may this influence the treatment of a medical disorder such as type 2 diabetes? In the native American culture “each individual strives to maintain a balance among spiritual, social, and physical needs in a holistic approach” (). This is similar to the Chinese traditional medicine that believes that energies within an individual have to be balanced in order to maintain good health. Thus someone is considered ill in ...

1. If you become ill, how might your worldview influence your expectations about your illness and its treatment? In my culture we have a strong belief in harmonizing the energies within and without ourselves for a physical and spiritual health. As such, my worldview is that when all energies are in harmony then illness can be controlled. But having grown in the modern globalization era, I have also learned to appreciate the combination of traditional and modern health beliefs. So if I become ill...

1. List the countries that comprise South Asia. List and briefly describe at least four religions practiced in this region. What are the similarities and differences regarding religion between Pakistan and India? The main difference between Pakistan and India when it comes to religion is that Indians are mostly Hindus (85% of population) whereas Pakistanis are mostly Muslim (98% of population). In deed, the separation of the two countries was primarily on the basis of separating the two relig...

1. Summarize the immigration patterns of northern and southern Europeans. Northern – the British were the earliest to arrive in the united states in the 17th century. They first settled in Virginia and Maryland and later expanded to new England. The arrival of British migrants reduced dramatically after the declaration of independence. The Irish, on the other hand, began arriving in the 18th century as did the French. The latter two groups were immigrating in search of economic opportunities, ...

1. Briefly describe the traditional health practices and beliefs of the Russians, Germans, and Scandinavians. Russians – Russians believe if natural cures and alternative medicine. Such methods are used extensively together with biomedical therapy in Russia. Some Russians believe that certain illnesses are caused by supernatural causes and therefore require magic and occult therapies.

Food and food habits are ingrained in the minds of almost all human beings. In my own life, experience with food is perhaps the oldest memory I have – of sitting in the kitchen floor in my grandmother’s house eating fruits or dumplings. It was always a messy affair but no food experience has matched childhood meals at my grandmother. It is from these early beginning experiences with food that my food habits began to form and morphed into what I consider my food habits today.

Questions and Answers for Mr. Stevens quizzes 1 & 2