"ONE CANNOT THINK WELL, LOVE WELL, SLEEP WELL, IF ONE HAS NOT DINED WELL" - VIRGINIA WOOLF

In my previous post I stated that I no longer eat beef, poultry (including eggs), dairy or store-bought fish. Actually I no longer eat store-bought animal products in general. It sounds like a very restrictive diet but I do eat anything that is traditional Inupiaq food.

This decision to change my diet didn’t happen overnight. It actually began when I started reading ingredients on food packages. Most people pick up a food item and look for calorie and fat content, which is a good habit but I would bet that a lot of people do not read the ingredients as thoroughly. My body, for whatever reason, has some difficulty digesting gluten and dairy products and as such, I have given up both. This has only happened within the last couple of years and I attribute it to getting older and the fact that so many foods are highly processed.

Although I often check the "Nutrition Facts," I pay more attention to the "Ingredients."

The act of actively reading the ingredients list on food packaging can be very enlightening. It really forces you to examine the food that you eat and what is in it. The act of reading the ingredients has become second nature to me by now and I never buy anything without checking the ingredients first.

How often do you read the ingredients? Some things I look for include flour (wheat) and eggs.

This simple but enlightening habit got me to thinking about the meat that I eat. Where is it coming from, how are the animals treated, what kind of hormones and antibiotics am I ingesting? After thinking about this for a bit, I decided that I would give up meat. I would begin by cutting out beef and pork first, mostly because I didn’t eat these as much and they aren’t as nutritious as say chicken or fish. A few weeks had passed and I didn’t miss either at all.

I thought that I would have trouble giving up chicken and eggs because I ate these most often. They are lean, cheap and accessible sources of protein. I gave these up next and wasn’t missing them after several weeks had passed. 

I continued to eat store-bought fish but gave this up as well.

At one point I considered going completely vegan but in the end I decided that I would continue to eat Inupiaq food. I am, after all, Inupiaq and I love our food and it is and will always be a part of me. It is an important factor in my identity as an Inupiaq woman, how could I give it up? To me, it would be like rejecting a part of myself. When I think of our food, I think of all the work and care that goes into preparing it. My ancestors survived on it and besides, it tastes so darn good.

Of course, living off of only traditional food is not as convenient or easy as going to the store and buying it from the meat department. So, in between eating niqipiaq I supplement my diet by eating beans, nuts, seeds and tofu.