Understanding “nostalgic inequality”: A critical analysis of barriers to Latinos’ healthy eating practices in the United States

Abstract

Based on two mixed-methods studies conducted with first and second generation Latinas in New York City (NYC), this article questions simplistic notions of acculturation by stressing the impact of structural conditions (at the individual, social and physical levels) in determining Latinas' food practices in the United States (U.S.). The term "nostalgic inequality" is used here to argue that Latinas' retention of, and adaptation to, their traditional staples (i.e., nostalgic foods) tends to favor affordable and fat-saturated items (e.g., fried and processed foods) that through time contribute to higher rates of obesity and cardiovascular disease, among other deleterious health conditions. In the end, this review is aimed at raising awareness about the barriers to healthy eating experienced by disadvantaged minority groups in the U.S. urban milieu.

Paqueteros and Paqueteras

“…Such food insecurity was partially alleviated by periodic infusions of staples (especially dried corn and beans) brought to the city from relatives still farming in the countryside. Viladrich and Tagliaferro (2016) describe the brisk market for ''nostalgia'' foods among Latin American migrants in New York City, as well as the ''nostalgic inequality'' experienced by those who must make their lives in landscapes of food oppression that do not meet their needs (Viladrich 2017). Altobelli (n.d.) recounts how Italian migrants insisted on foods familiar and even imported from Italy, despite critiques by policy makers and social workers prompted by the migrants' attachment to culinary practices from their communities of origin.…”

“…It is well acknowledged that migration can produce homesickness for certain foods. Often those foods are associated with special occasions and ceremony, and are likely to be foods that are labor intensive-in the Mexican context, such foods are mole or tamales-as opposed to everyday foods or foods that are easily replicable in the location of settlement (Gálvez 2018;Viladrich 2017). Pérez (2014) chronicles the ways that gendered kinds of socially reproductive labor around food preparation and transmission of knowledge about cocina-foodways and cuisine-contribute to strengthening the bonds of kinship and culture.…”

“…Unable to travel seasonally for work and to reunite with family, as generations of migrants did in the past before militarization of the border and criminalization of migratory flows, many Mexican nationals found themselves trapped in the United States. And the places they found themselves in are often food landscapes impoverished by structural inequalities, in which the food that is most ubiquitously available is not conducive to health (Brones 2018;Viladrich 2017;Penniman 2018;Reese 2019). Hana Garth's research makes clear the importance not only of affordability and accessibility of food but also its ''adequacy.''…”