Ethnic Influences on Nutrition

Catalog description

This course examines broad influences of cultural identity on food choice, nutritional quality, and human health. Through the lens of traditional diet and custom, students research the origins of common foods from marginalized ethnic backgrounds, analyze dietary patterns and nutritional values impacted by social and cultural limitation and biases. By studying the acculturation process for various cultural groups, students gain a deep understanding on how historical, religious, and socioeconomic factors may lead to bias and stereotyping, which ultimately become environmental and systemic factors impacting human health.