Addressing Diabetes: Returning to a Traditional Diet is Idealistic, Not Realistic

After reading Anne Raver’s “In Desert, Finding Blooms that Heal” and Gary Paul Nabhan’s chapter, “Diabetes, Diet, and Native American Foraging Traditions,” no one can argue against the fact that diabetes is the foremost public health problem facing the Tohono O’odham people. Due to unhealthy dietary choices and lack of meaningful exercise regimes, diabetes diagnoses run rampant and take a toll on the community’s resources, medical costs, and cultural mentality. Yet, diabetes clearly does not only plague the Tohono O’odham. Many demographic populations and communities across the United States suffer from diabetes.

Diabetes is a nationwide problem that should be addressed. I am not inferring that we should discount the uptake in diabetes that affects the Tohono O’odham people because so many U.S. communities suffer from diabetes. I acknowledge that Westernization and other general U.S. influences introduced the Tohono O’odham people to fatty, unhealthy foods that contribute to diabetes, as well as the fact that traditional O’odham crops have been proven to not contribute to diabetes. However, I find arguing that the Tohono O’odham can only combat diabetes by returning to a traditional diet to be an incredibly unrealistic solution.

I might sound negative, but I consider myself to be a realist. Yes, it is a problem that the “younger generations are abandoning what it means to be culturally and ecologically O’odham” (Nabhan 201). Nevertheless, this is a cultural problem. How could the elders convince the greater Tohono O’odham people to return to agriculture and to a traditional diet? Purchasing food is obviously easier and thus more appealing. The Tohono O’odham should address their problem of declining cultural values—but they should address their diabetes problem with a realistic dietary solution that will appeal to the greater community.     

The Constant Presence of Drug Trafficking in the O'odham Reservation

I wanted to share this very recent article (posted on from the Arizonan news website Tucson.com on March 1st and updated on March 3rd). When researching for my final paper proposal, I came across "11 Arrested on Suspicion of Supplying Drug Smugglers on O'odham Land" by Curt Prendergast from the Arizona Daily Star.  Here is the link: http://tucson.com/news/local/border/arrested-on-suspicion-of-supplying-drug-smugglers-on-o-odham/article_f66937a9-0f39-5718-8daf-da60497456d8.html

Drug trafficking has greatly influenced contemporary life on the Tohono O'odham Reservation. The desert and mountainous terrain make for an ideal landscape for smuggling marijuana and other illegal substances across the border and on towards Phoenix.

This news article shows some Tohono O'odham people participating in the trafficking process and ultimately getting caught. A number of the defendants are Tohono O'odham and U.S. citizens. They are facing charges of conspiracy to distribute marijuana because they actively facilitated the drug trade by providing supplies to scouts who hide in the mountains and desert and give directions to smugglers regarding how to avoid authorities.

This instance is just one of many that illustrates how drug trafficking has disrupted life on the reservation. Perhaps Tohono O'odham people would not become involved with the drug trafficking industry if they had better employment options? What can the Tohono O'odham people or the U.S. federal authorities do to combat the trafficking?

Diabetes: Why Westernization is Bad For the Tohono O'odham

The most pressing and significant health problem that plagues Tohono O'odham tribe members is diabetes. Mostly due to a lack of exercise and poor diet, a large portion of people in this tribe shop for bakery treats rather than harvest vegetables. Its clear that this American practices of eating fast food and buying instead of making food has reached the reservation. By the way the people at the Cultural Center in the tribe describe it , Westernization has been integrated into the Tohono O'odham diet for decades, creating a large number of people who have diabetes. Diabetes has become more severe in people who continue to eat the same foods and don't exercise. But would diabetes have happened without the strong influence of the U.S.?

Without Westernization, diabetes would be an issue but not to the extent that it is today. With Westernization came fast food restaurants and foods like Cheetos and Twinkies. If the U.S. didn't influence the reservation in terms of food culture and the tribe remained isolated in that respect, those foods would not be in the grocery store Bashas and fast food chains wouldn't exist on the reservation. It is possible,however, that individuals in the tribe would be overweight and perhaps at risk for diabetes,The lack of exercise that the Tohono O'odham tribe completes isn't necessarily due to Western influence. The loss of the cultural belief of hard work to eat food is replaced by convenience. Even if the U.S. no longer influenced the presence of junk food,  a majority the Tohono O'odham will likely get their food from local farmers and harvesters. While this is healthier for them, the lack of exercise still puts them at risk.

The only way for diabetes to diminish almost completely is for tribe members to revert back to their ancestors' food culture. The diet should consist of foods like cholla buds and tepary beans to stablize blood pressure and calorie intake. If the tribe members get the foods themselves, they will be exerting physical force which will help stabilize weight. Thus, only traditional practices of taking and making food will solve the issue of diabetes for the Tohono O'odhaam tribe.

The Food of Tohono O'odham nation

It was a common thing to hear on the reservation, "we need to go back to our old food," "our old food gave us strength," "this new westernized diet is making us weak." At least for those tribal members that we spoke with, returning to a more traditional diet, and more traditional harvesting practices. But it was unclear if the rest of the Tohono O'odham nation felt like this about their diets.

The number that I heard was 90%. 90% of Tohono O'odham nation has diabetes. It goes without saying that this is crippling, both economically and culturally. It was common to blame westernized food for this statistic. Angelo Jaoquin did, so did Joe Jaoquin.

Gary Nabban breaks down this issue, showing how tradition O'odham food serves to regulate blood sugar, preventing diabetes. He then shows how many in O'odham are predisposed to diabetes. Te highly saturated sugary diets and the genetic vulnerability of the O'odham to diabetes combines to lead to the health disaster. This appears to be the most compelling answer to the health issues in O'odham nation. But many O'odham appear not to blame the food as much as they should.

Our tour guide at the museum, a relatively young O'odham woman, stated clearly that lack of exercise, not diet is the main cause of O'odham health issues. She went on to say that people can eat whatever they want and still be healthy, as long as they are exercising. The man that was with her agreed with her. To me at least, no amount of gyms with indoor tracks will solve the O'odham health issues without a revamped diet.

Relationships between Tribes and National Parks

For me, one of the most interesting conversations during the trip was with Chip Littlefield. After seeing so much of the desert, I was intrigued to hear about the relationship between the Tohono O’odham and the parks. To me, understanding this relationship is central to understand conceptions of land in modern O’odham culture. The Saguaro National Park, Oregon Pipe National Monument, and the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum are all located on traditional O’odham lands but they are no longer owned by the tribe, nor are they administered by the tribe. It was interesting to me to hear Chip speak about working for a federal park, while understanding that this land was taken by the government from the Tohono O’odham.

The part of Chip’s talk that stuck with me most was when he discussed how he tries to cultivate a relationship between their park and the Tohono O’odham. He noted that there is no real federal policy guiding interactions between parks and native groups, but their park has made it a specific goal to work with the Tohono O’odham. They work in the schools, all the way from elementary age to college age at the Tohono O’odham Community College, to bring students to the park and get them excited. He talked a lot about the impact of having a coworker who is a tribal member. Seeing a Tohono O'odham woman working for the national parks has the potential to inspire Tohono O'odham children. Representation is extremely important in modern culture, and it absolutely extends to native groups.

I found this inspiring, and am hopeful that in the future other parks will try to take similar actions. Specific initiatives to work with the tribal education systems, and hire tribal members as rangers could go a long way to improving park-tribe relationships. I think it could be extremely beneficial to the entire national parks system for someone like Chip to go around and explain what he is trying to do, and the differences it has made. Cultivating a respectful partnership between national parks and the Tohono O’odham is crucial to keeping connections to their land alive. If young people are not exposed to the land, a large amount of which is preserved in the Saguaro National Park and the Oregon Pipe National Monument, they will not be able to understand their culture and history.

The Role of Elders in Modern Tohono O'odham Life

As in many other Native American cultures, the Tohono O’odham have a great deal of respect for and reverence towards their elders. Decisions made by the tribal legislative council and other important actors are often run by the elders before being enacted. However, after our talks with various tribal members, I am skeptical of the role elders play in decision making as the tribe moves away from traditional lifestyles.

            The role of the elders first came to my attention during our tour of the museum. Our guide explained that tribal members were asked what aspects of Tohono O’odham culture and life they wanted to see included in the museum, and one of the biggest responses was traditional ways and ceremonies. She went on to say that the elders rejected this idea, under the premise that it was wrong for everyone to understand traditions and ceremonies. They believe that this knowledge was to be exclusive to certain members of the tribe, especially the medicine men. I was glad to see that the wishes of the elders were respected, and that aspects of traditional life could remain sacred. At the end of our museum tour, our guide mentioned that there was to be a new exhibit about tradition and ceremony coming soon. This confused me, as she had previously stated that they were not going to do this because of the elders’ wishes to keep their ceremonies secretive. To me, it seems disrespectful to go against their explicitly stated concerns.

            The issue of the opinions of the elders again came to mind when I compared the views of Baboquivari mentioned by the younger and older members of the tribe. The younger speakers mentioned that Baboquivari was the sacred home of I’Itoi, but they said they were not upset by people hiking and exploring the mountain. Joe Joaquin, an older member of the tribe, explicitly said that because of its sacred nature, only Tohono O’odham should be allowed to set foot on Baboquivari. More specifically, he seemed to think that only Tohono O’odham with specific purposes for visiting the mountain should be allowed to go. These views are very clearly in conflict with one another, and it makes me wonder how much say the elders have in the use of Baboquivari. It is likely a tourist attraction for people interested in hiking and the incredible views it offers. After hearing Joe speak, I cannot help but wonder if more of the elders are upset by the exploitation of their most sacred location by non-tribal members.

            As time goes on and the Tohono O’odham interact more with the non-native world, it is inevitable that things will change. I do not think that as things change, they should move away from considerations of the elders’ opinions. At least considering these two situations, this seems to be happening. I am hopeful it is not a larger trend away from listening to the elders, because that could be extremely damaging. If they stop consulting with the elders, they will almost certainly lose their culture and traditions that have been around for so many years.

Retaining Tradition

           At first glance, the Tohono O’odham reservation is a place of contradiction. The expanse of the desert and mountains contrasts sharply with the small one-story homes and stores of the O’odham people. Sells seems like an asphalt island in a desert ocean. The town is very isolated but also vibrant and lively. From my point of view poverty appeared to be the main issue. The community had all the markings; health issues, drug and alcohol problems, and crime. Therefore it struck me when not a single tribal member who we talked to mentioned poverty as an issue. Instead, Joe Joaquin, Jefford, and Angelo were mostly concerned with preserving O’odham culture and finding ways to use traditional lifestyles to solve contemporary issues. This seemed odd to me at first. Why worry about the preservation of a bunch of pottery when you have a massive diabetes crisis? However, I soon began to see the wisdom of what Joe and others were offering. Angelo pointed out that harvesting desert plants in traditional ways promoted exercise and a healthier lifestyle. Joe spoke about how the younger generation wasn’t living right. He seemed convinced that the source of many of the O’odham’s problems stemmed from lost knowledge of traditional ways.

            These conversations with tribal members made me think about the feasibility of solving economic issues through the preservation of culture. Joe pointed out that the O’odham did not have their current problems until western culture permeated the reservation. The introduction of drugs, junk food, and alcohol by Anglos massively affected the community in negative ways. Spurning these vices and turning to old-school ways could be a way to turn around the community. Retaining culture is essential not just for the O'odham but for any communities well being. During the Roman conquest of Britain in the 1^st century the writer Tacitus commented on seeing recently conquered Britons giving up their traditions and adopting Roman culture wholeheartedly. He wrote, “Step by step they (the britons) were led to things which dispose to vice, the lounge, the bath, the eloquent banquet. All this in their ignorance they called civilization, when it was but a part of their servitude.” For the O’odham to remain a proud and prosperous people they must remember the traditional ways in the face of an onslaught of western culture.