Sabrina Tavernise noted in her article, “The Health Toll of Immigration”, how immigrants felt self-conscious during attempts to walk along roads for exercise because they were afraid of being suspected as illegal immigrants. This reminded me of several posts I saw on Tumblr about overweight people exercising in public and the comments they got from fellow gym goers and passerby. Some of the comments made them feel uncomfortable. Other comments were praised by the Tumblr community.
Do other groups of people receive comments that can be viewed as negative?
How can feedback from other people and personal perceptions of what other people might think affect a person’s attempts to make his or her lifestyle healthier?

-Virginia

It was not surprising to read that immigrants are living longer lives than their American-born counterparts due to American behaviors- drinking, smoking, eating high calorie diets, eating fast food and processed food and our lazy lifestyles. How can we change this? What are some feasible ways that America can improve it’s lifestyle to decrease the obesity rate and encourage healthy living? Is it even possible for America to turn this around?

A couple of the food concepts explained in the “Corss-cultural Medicine” article, I’ve heard my Chinese parents and grandparents mention. In Chinese culture, the “hot” and “cold” food balance is also very important. I’ve been told by my grandma not to eat too many “hot” foods because it’s extremely unhealthy, and she will not eat the very “hot” or “cold” foods to upset her balance. Honestly, I don’t understand this concept at all and I do not pay much heed to my grandmother’s warnings. Should these pieces of wisdom from the East be learned in addition to our Western medical practices since they are as a whole are more healthy than we are? (My grandma just turned 92 and she’s going strong!! Maybe her lifestyle is pretty good after all?!)

While reading the three articles, I was reminded of the conversation and discussion we had in class a few weeks ago on the affect of media and business markets on the population and whether or not we, as a population, have a choice on what to eat or watch. These readings were just a confirmation of how there is the ongoing struggle for those who struggle to live and end up bringing detriment to their lives by falling for the tricks, strategies, and business tactics of large corporations who end up making money off of others by directly and indirectly hurting them in the process. However, who is really to blame: the business markets (and their advertising of unhealthy foods and the need for businesses to out compete their competitors and thus hurting the population more) or the population (for falling for these tactics and for not trying hard enough to keep their healthy lifestyle)? Or is it the idea that is communicated to potential migrants in other countries who believe that these lifestyles are a representation of success (once they reach “success” in America), internalize the lifestyle, and end up with the repercussions that come after?

Samantha Chiu

The readings effectively iterates one of the concerning barriers between immigrants and their health care, which is the fact that immigrants are reluctant to approach health care facilities because of fear of unfamiliarity and legal issues such as their legal status. The unfamiliarity may stem from differences between physicians and their supposed patients in the ability to communicate and express themselves in English, accustomed method of health care, and the role of family members in a patient’s health care. Seeing as how these problematic factors in treating patients can be boiled down to an overly simplified category of unaccustomed practices, and America considers itself the home of immigrants, would it be possible to have open public information sessions about available health cares in as many languages as possible? If so, how can the sessions be conducted in a way that it is most time and cost efficient? If not, how can the government go about in trying their best for their immigrant citizens to be informed of their rights for health care?

Furthermore, two of the readings focus on the relationship between Latin Americans’ obesity and acculturation. For many Latin Americans, their dream to lead a better life through immigration to United States has ironically led them to gain adverse health conditions. The first reading points to “selective acculturation” as a main culprit for drastic change in the health of Latin American immigrants. While that might be true, the same could be said for vice versa, meaning that “selective acculturation” theoretically can lead to an even better lifestyle for Latin American immigrants through allowing them to take advantage of the availability of other kinds of healthy foods than the ones that are from their motherland. However, they have limited knowledge and access to such foods because they are often uneducated in making healthy choices and are often in low SES (socioeconomic status). While it is impossible for all citizens in America to be wealthy and be able to buy healthy foods (i.e. no processed or fast foods), even the lower class have the right to lead nutritious lifestyle. How can the American economy become lenient so that well-being of the people comes before private profit? Or is that impossible in the capital market?

How has the location of the African Americans affect gentrification of Harlem? It was stated in Chapter 2 of “Eat the City” that African Americans were always a step ahead in terms of relocating because they were at the outskirts of white neighborhoods. How would have the process of gentrification changed if African Americans were forced out of Manhattan and into Queens altogether? Would the same Harlem have developed?

Gentrification seemed to have a less intense affect on Williamsburg than Harlem because the people of Williamsburg were more resistance to “change” than Harlem. Is this because Williamsburg was gentrified by the media rather than the state? And if so, do you think the media has less power to impact development? Also, in an interview with a new retail entrepreneur, who had no connections to the community other than a retail store, the entrepreneur said that new retail entrepreneurs represent the neighborhood. Do you think new retail entrepreneurs feel they have more of a “right to the city” than the residents of the neighborhood?

After reading “New Retail Capital and Neighborhood Change: Boutiques and Gentrification in New York City” one question I still have is does gentrification help or harm Urban neighborhoods in an overall sense? The reading states that “old stores and bars manage to shift gears, upgrade their merchandise and ambiance, and attract a new clientele. But in the process, they risk losing their old customers”. Is gentrification something where the means justify the end result? What parts of the gentrification process are more beneficial and which could be tweaked to accommodate the low-income inhabitants of certain areas? In other words how exactly can the public policy be changed to both accommodate the low-income inhabitants and local shops while still fostering the growth of new ones?