My nephew and his wife had lunch with me and my sister the other day. They helped my sister with some chores. It was not a planned visit and I did not have anything special to serve. I heated the left-over “arroz caldo” that we had for supper the night before and pulled out some “dim sum” from the freezer that I steamed. For dessert, I had some ice cream. But they refused the sweets. “I am trying to lose weight” my nephew explained. “I am about 220 pounds again. My doctor said that I should get back to 175 lbs.”
I recalled that he went on a weight regiment several years ago. He was getting short of breath and his doctor recommended a strict diet and regular exercise. He followed the instructions of the dietician which included a lot of vegetables and fruits, lean meat and fish. He walked every evening for a couple of miles. I think he lost 45 pounds.
That was three years ago. After about eighteen months of dieting and exercise, he got back to his former loves; barbecued ribs, sausages and pork chops. During the winter, he stopped walking in the evening. In about a year’s time he got back the weight he lost. And his shortness of breath, of course.
So he is starting all over again. He hopes to lose one or two pounds a week. He is trying to avoid his favourites. He used to buy the frozen saba bananas from the Philippines and cook them in syrup. Not these days! He started cooking those leafy vegetables similar to small pechay which he would stir-fry with garlic and soy sauce. He walked inside the mall during the winter. He said the changes in his life style are working. I hope he keeps to them and maintains them.
Losing weight is a main preoccupation here in North America. Every time you turn on the television, ads on how to keep one’s body trim will surely be among those breaks in the programs that the audience watches. There are fitness exercises, programs that combine menus and exercises, all sorts of clinics that invite people to visit, surgical procedures to remove fat from the body, herbal concoctions to regulate weight, reality shows like “The Biggest Losers” and celebrities promoting agencies that are engaged in the business of losing weight. Indeed, keeping physically fit is a multimillion business.
Health agencies, governmental or non governmental have also expressed great concern about this aspect of the people’s lives. Obesity, according to recent studies is one of the causes of diabetes and heart problems. The First Lady of the United States of America, Michele Obama, has launched a project to increase awareness in the dangers of obesity. Food served in school cafeterias has been modified to lessen fatty ingredients and sugar. The sale of pop drinks has been limited if not totally disallowed in schools. Some well-known chefs have traveled from place to place demonstrating healthful eating.
On the other hand, technology has brought us the awareness of what is happening in some other parts of the world. Programs in television, through World Vision, the Plan and other charitable agencies, make us aware, as if these were only next door about the thousands of children and adults who do not have enough to eat and are dying of hunger and disease. The recent earthquake in Haiti, not very far from North America, had made us aware of how poor this country is and how its people fight for survival. The day-to-day photos a shown during that period after the earthquake, portrayed not only the devastation caused by the disaster, but the way of life of the victims who were already destitute even before the earthquake. The lack of water, food, medicine and a place to sleep, was very touching because those men, women and children were very helpless. Had it not been to the international assistance that poured in from people all around the world, who say how vulnerable the victims were, many of them would have perished.
Many countries in Africa and some in Asia are also suffering from lack of food and other basic necessities in life. Technology has improved communication tremendously but has not seemed to have done much in bringing parity in the ways of life of the people. The poor have remained poor and the rich and powerful have maintained their status. China and India are becoming powers to reckon with, but the ways of life of their people have not really improved that much.
The haves and the have-nots have their own unique problems. The well-to-do have so much that many are obese and have heart problems. The very poor lack food and other basic necessities that they suffer from hunger and diseases related to malnutrition.
The other day, I saw on television a contest in a country wherein two groups threw baked pies with whipped cream at one another. After the competition they had a big problem of cleaning up. They hired a company who charged a lot of money to do the job. Why did they not just eat the pies and share the extras to the homeless and hungry?
As my nephew was telling me about his problem in losing weight, I thought of our own people in the Philippines. I thought of my elder sister who was telling me how expensive rice is at present and how she tries to make both ends meet. She has no weight problems. I thought of the Filipino children who sleep under the bridge in Quiapo and who pick pockets and grab necklaces and handbags as occupations. I do not think they have weight problems.
I thought of the hundreds of live-in caregivers in Toronto who send money every month to their families in the Philippines, Not many of them are developing weight problems.
I thought of many of them whose children are growing in the care of their fathers, grandparents, aunts and uncles hoping to have their families reunited in a few years. I hope the families are not broken and the children understand their mother’s absences.
I hope our Filipino children here in Canada do not become obese. And we, the adults, remain physically fit.