Page 24 - Barefoot guide

Photo © John Wilson

CELEBRATE DIVERSE TRADITIONAL FOODS AND MEALS
Traditional diets across Africa have always been highly nutritious. People learnt over hundreds of years what to
eat that made them healthy. When there was little or no transportation, and limited availablilty of imported food,
people had to rely only on what could be produced locally. To reduce risk, they made use of a wide variety of local
crops and vegetables. This is true of most traditional diets all over the world. Even in the wealthy industrialised
countries, there is a growing movement of people eating and celebrating diverse, traditional foods and meals
made with naturally grown healthy ingredients. It is time for us in Africa to celebrate our own traditional diets.
This can be the basis of healthy eating in future. We can, of course, also include healthy foods from other
traditional cultures. Culture and traditions move on with time. The above photo shows a traditional meal in
Uganda with matoke (cooked bananas), a variety of vegetables, goat meat, one of many varieties of beans,
avocado and groundnut sauce.

DIVERSITY OF MICROBES IN OUR STOMACH
Our good health, which starts with the diversity of microbes in the soil, also depends on the diversity of
microbes in our stomachs. Modern research is increasingly revealing the truth about this. And we get that
diversity of microbes in our stomachs by eating a diversity of safe foods without poisons on them; also foods
without all those added chemicals that you often find in processed foods being sold in supermarkets and
other such shops. This diversity of microbes in our stomachs will keep our bodies and brains functioning very
well! This will help you to survive if, despite all your efforts, you get infected with COVID-19!

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