Your body is a temple. — 1 Corinthians 6:19

For those of you who are living with Type 2 diabetes and are NOT on Ozempic, keep reading this column. This week, I’m delving a little deeper into why this disease is so prevalent among African Americans. Here is the history.

This period in American dates back to 1790, and for those enslaved ones, food was still scarce, thus the “thrifty genes” protected them. If you research documents at the National Archives and Records Administration, slaves received rations in America. According to the hypothesis, the “thrifty” genotype would have been advantageous for hunter-gatherer populations, especially child-bearing women, because it would allow them to fatten more quickly during times of abundance. Fatter individuals carrying the thrifty genes would thus better survive times of food scarcity.

Africans who managed to survive the slave trade here in America, arrived on the shores very strong. The majority of them worked in fields from sun-up to sundown, six days per week, and in many cases, seven days a week. Slaves ate what we call  “soul food” scraps, like hog maws, chitterlings, pigtails, pig feet, pig ears, and they drank milk from a trough alongside other animals, this is true! No longer in our homeland, our people ate whatever was made available to them, scraps.

In an effort to create a delicious meal, the women worked on recipes they could all enjoy. They loved collard greens with fatback meat; they used lard and learned to bake sweet potato pies; they cleaned chitterlings and made them into a delicacy to be eaten on special occasions; pots of beans seasoned with ham hocks, pigtails or pig feet — a harmful but delicious tradition that still lives on today. Homemade biscuits from self-rising flour were the norm, made from white flour and lard. They learned to make hush puppies, candied yams, peach and apple cobblers, pies and cakes, all types of potatoes, cornbread, and the soul food list goes on and on.

Though the enslaved ate poorly, they enjoyed it and were able to sustain themselves easily. Why? They didn’t realize it at the time, but due to the hard work — physical labor in the fields 12-16 hours a day, from sunup to sundown — such diets did not harm the them. The exercise burned off all negative possibilities. Compare our lifestyles today to that of the slaves — you will see what has happened.

The work was the difference — 12-16 hours each day of physical labor is a lot of time exercising! Plus, they had the so-called “thrifty genes,” which allowed their bodies to preserve food in an appropriate manner when food was scarce.

What is the major cause of Type 2 diabetes in the United States? Research shows that being overweight, obesity and physical inactivity are the main culprits.

You are more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes if you are not physically active and are overweight or have obesity. Extra weight sometimes causes insulin resistance and is common in people with Type 2 diabetes. The location of body fat also makes a difference.

In general, obesity was a stronger independent risk factor than physical inactivity for Type 2 diabetes. Some studies concluded that the risk of physical inactivity differed between categories of BMI. It was suggested that increased physical activity may, at least in part, counteract the detrimental effects of obesity, particularly in obese individuals. However, other studies found that diabetes risk increased dramatically over BMI categories, and the beneficial effect of physical activity was minimal. Furthermore, two studies suggested that physical activity may be more beneficial for normal weight than obese individuals. Only three studies formally assessed interaction and two presented that there was no significant P value for interaction between BMI and physical activity in the Cox proportional hazard model.

Pay close attention to the foods you buy and eat. Google and see for yourselves, I found quite an abundance of information on synthetic chemicals that have infiltrated our food system during the period in which rates of diabetes have surged. Data has suggested that one particular synthetic chemical, bisphenol A (BPA), may be associated with increased risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.

Many chemicals are tough to avoid. But you can limit your exposure to chemicals added to food intentionally, especially some artificial sweeteners, preservatives and added sugars, like high-fructose corn syrup. 

If you set a goal to pay closer attention to what you eat in 2024, and you want to know how to reduce your exposure to harmful chemicals as shown by research by numerous research studies, you will be all right.

Lyndia Grant is a speaker/writer living in the D.C. area. Her radio show, “Think on These Things,” airs Fridays at 6 p.m. on 1340 AM (WYCB), a Radio One station. To reach Grant, visit her website, www.lyndiagrant.com, email lyndiagrantshowdc@gmail.com or call 240-602-6295. Follow her on X @LyndiaGrant and on Facebook.

A seasoned radio talk show host, national newspaper columnist, and major special events manager, Lyndia is a change agent. Those who experience hearing messages by this powerhouse speaker are changed forever!

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