American Indian Health

A website devoted to recovering the health of Indigenous peoples


vegetables vegetables

Welcome to the American Indian Health and Diet Recovery site. The goals are to bring to light the health problems faced by indigenous peoples, to understand how we came to our unhealthy situations and what we can do about them. You will find no fry bread recipes here! This site is consistently growing, adding new recipes, videos, links to other websites, and recommended books, articles and magazines.

Health Problems

These are the basic principles that guide this site:

  • All tribes face a similar dilemma: once our people were strong and physically healthy. Now, we are facing a health crisis of epidemic proportions.
  • Fresh, unprocessed foods are healthier than fried, processed ones.
  • Foods that are home grown can help develop pride and healthy bodies.
  • Natives gathered, hunted and cultivated foods that kept them healthy. Foods eaten at fast-food joints are the opposite.
  • Food we prepare in our kitchens gives us control over what we and our families eat. When we buy food at fast food restaurants, others are given control over what we consume.
  • Preparing food in our kitchens gives us pleasure and peace of mind. Pulling weeds, fertilizing, picking fruit and vegetables, peeling potatoes, shucking and grinding corn, and making meals are among the best ways to relax and think.
  • A little bit of exercise every day adds up in the long run.
  • No one can force you to eat unhealthily, to smoke or to be sedentary.
  • Educate yourself about nutrition and fitness and you can change your life.
  • We must recover our traditional indigenous knowledge and engage our elders to discover how our ancestors solved their problems.
  • We must care for our families and communities so that we become part of the circle of people who support each other in times of grief and pain.
  • We must become educated about our tribes’ rich histories and cultures to develop pride in ourselves.
Indigenous Foods
food pictures Food Photographs
Recipes
Exercise
Take Charge of Your Health
Gardens
Ponds
Resources and Fun Links

American Indian Health website is overseen by Devon A. Mihesuah, enrolled citizen of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. My website link: http://www.indigenous.ku.edu/People/Personal_Pages/Devon_Mihesuah.shtml

If you are writing about indigenous food and/or health, please keep in mind that if you plan to utilize contributions here, it is appropriate to cite this website. All photographs by Devon Mihesuah, unless otherwise noted.

Send mail to:

Devon Mihesuah  
mihesuah@ku.edu
Cora Lee Beers Price Professor
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
1410 Jayhawk Blvd., 105 Lippincott Hall
The University of Kansas
Lawrence, KS  66045

 
Information on this site is for educational purposes only. A physician can offer medical diagnosis, medical advice and treatment. Links to other websites are provided for your convenience and those other sites are owned by third parties.