In this Rio Grande City kitchen, this family cooks up more than dinner. The kitchen is adjacent to a family meat market where beef un caja de tripas, and whole chickens are sold alongside favorites like chorizo and fajita sazonada. On Saturdays and Sundays, barbacoa and menudo calientito expand the menu. Food brings money into this household, but for many in the Lower Rio Grande Valley, food costs are a burden. Low incomes, according to research, translate to significantly reduced intake of calcium, vitamin A, vitamin C, niacin, and potassium. Surveys in one nutrition program showed that at entry participants ate as little as 10.6% and no more than 69.5% of the recommended daily servings of major food groups. Local agencies, including those in Rio Grande City delivering nutrition education for mothers, food for the elderly, and snacks after school, try to ensure each generation gets the nutrition it needs. That way, young and old can continue to gather in the kitchen and, in the making and sharing of food, enjoy more than just a meal.
Percentage of expanded food and nutrition education program
participants consuming recommended servings of major food
groups at entry - Cameron and Hidalgo Counties, October 2001 to September 2002
Economic status, culture, ethnicity, tradition, regional characteristics, food availability, age, and lifestyle affect food choice in the Lower Rio Grande Valley. Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program data collected 2001-2002 in Cameron and Hidalgo counties indicate that though significant improvements in dietary habits were reported after completion of the program, at the outset participants were more likely not to meet food group intake requirements than to meet them.
Income level highly influences food choice, and suboptimal intake of specific nutrients is a cause of concern. Low income in Mexican Americans has been associated with significantly lower intake of calcium, vitamin A, vitamin C, niacin, and potassium and higher intake of cholesterol.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's 1994-1996 national Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals indicated that in comparison with non-Hispanic whites, Mexican Americans ate fewer vegetables, more fruit, more eggs, and more legumes; drank fewer alcoholic and carbonated soft drinks; and consumed similar levels of milk and protein. How similar food intake in the Lower Rio Grande Valley is to that in this national sample is unknown. A study in Starr County found that diets of residents had dietary fat and saturated fat intake levels above those recommended by the federal government. A separate investigation determined that 92% of mothers postpartum did not consume the recommended daily amount of folate, and studies of children in Pharr indicated that suboptimal intake of calcium, folate, iron, and zinc threaten growth and well-being. Adolescents in the Lower Rio Grande Valley are more likely to be at risk of being overweight and actually being overweight than are Texas adolescents. Research aimed at better characterizing food and nutrient intake is necessary to identify appropriate interventions.
