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Dietary change among migrantand nonmigrant Mexican‐Americanfamilies in Northern CaliforniaKathryn G. Dewey a , Margaret A. Strode a & Yolanda RuizFitch aa Department of Nutrition , University of California , Davis,California, 95616Published online: 31 Aug 2010.

To cite this article: Kathryn G. Dewey , Margaret A. Strode & Yolanda Ruiz Fitch (1984) Dietarychange among migrant and nonmigrant Mexican‐American families in Northern California,Ecology of Food and Nutrition, 14:1, 11-24, DOI: 10.1080/03670244.1984.9990766

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Ecology of Food and Nutrition, 1984, Vol. 14, pp. 11-24 © Gordon and Breach Science Publishers, Inc., 19840367-0244/84/1401-0011 $18.50/0 Printed in the United Kingdom

DIETARY CHANGE AMONG MIGRANT ANDNONMIGRANT MEXICAN-AMERICAN FAMILIES

IN NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

KATHRYN G. DEWEY, MARGARET A. STRODE andYOLANDA RUIZ FITCH

Department of Nutrition, University of California,Davis, California 95616

(Received March 17, 1983; in final form July 14, 1983)

Dietary data were obtained from 71 migrant and 69 nonmigrant low-income first-generation Mexican-American families. Among preschool children, average consumption from all food groups except veget-ables was adequate. Most adults stated that their diet had improved since moving to the U.S. Dietarychange was characterized by increased consumption of both "basic" and "new" foods, especially amongnonmigrants, with considerable retention of "traditional" foods. There was no correlation betweendegree of change in traditional foods and degree of change in basic or new foods. Dietary change was thusa function of two or more independent trends. Different socioeconomic factors were related to the threecomponents of dietary change. Bilingual children influenced adoption of new foods. Length of residencein the U.S. was not related to degree of dietary change. More migrants than nonmigrants held traditionalbeliefs proscribing certain foods during illness, pregnancy, or lactation.

KEY WORDS: Mexican-Americans, migrants, diet change, preschool children.

INTRODUCTION

Dietary change within immigrant groups or within groups undergoing "moderni-zation" has been a topic of increasing interest in community nutrition and nutritionalanthropology as more and more populations experience rapid,social change. Forimmigrant groups who are far removed geographically from their country of origin,retention of ethnic food patterns may depend in part on the strength of theirparticular ethnic sub-culture within the host society. Among Chinese-Americans inCalifornia, for example, the extensive Chinese sub-culture provides cultural supportfor "traditional" food patterns and ensures the availability of ethnic foods. Nonethe-less, considerable dietary change has occurred among Chinese-Americans (Grivettiand Paquette, 1978). Natives of India who have migrated to the U.S. have alsoexperienced dramatic alterations in their original patterns of vegetarianism andpreparation of foods (Gupta, 1975), and third-generation Greek-American womenhave abandoned many traditional Greek foods (Freedman, unpublished observa-tions).! In all these examples, it is difficult for families to visit their native countriesonce they have migrated to the United States. A different situation exists forMexicans coming to the U.S. Because of the proximity of Mexico, Mexican-American families in California can move back and forth across the border and areable to maintain contact with their cultural origins. They are thus a unique group forthe study of patterns of dietary change.

† Freedman, M. R. (1980). Food Habits and Dietary Change. A Study of First, Second, and ThirdGeneration Greek-Americans of Sacremento, California. Unpublished M.Sc. Thesis. Department of Nutri-tion, University of California, Davis.

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12 K. G. DEWEY, M. A. STRODE AND Y. R. FITCH

As Pelto, Pelto and Lung'aho (1981) have pointed out, investigators of dietarychange have often assumed that acculturation in food habits is a single continuum,from traditional to modern. In a study of food use in western Finland, Pelto, Pelto andLung'aho differentiated between use of traditional foods and of modern foods, andfound that the two scales were independent. Thus, dietary change does not necessarilyfollow a simple linear pattern. Other investigators have used different techniques tocharacterize patterns of dietary change. For example, Chassey, Van Veen and Young(1967) used an index of dietary complexity which they found to be related to urbaniza-tion, while Jerome (1980) differentiated between "core," "secondary core," and"peripheral diet" foods, and identified the processes of rejection, addition, substitu-tion and integration of foods.

In the present study, we identify three components of dietary change: loss orretention of traditional foods, addition of new foods characteristic of the host society,and addition or loss of basic foods common to both cultures. We hypothesize that,because Mexican-Americans are able to maintain contact with their native country,dietary change in this ethnic group is associated more with the second and thirdcomponents than with the first. We further suggest, on the basis of an earlier pilotstudy (Dewey et al., 1984), that change in the second component, new foods, can berelated to the influence of bilingual children in immigrant families.

Another aspect of dietary behavior that is subject to change in immigrant groups istheir food belief system. In Latin American cultures the concept of "hot" and "cold"foods, derived from the ancient Greek theory of humoral pathology and brought tothe western hemisphere by the Spanish, is an important principle governing foodchoices. Most foods, herbs, illnesses and bodily states are characterized by theirdegree of cold or hot, qualities which are independent of temperature. Hot illness orbodily states are usually treated with cold remedies, while cold illnesses are given hottreatments (Currier, 1966). There is little agreement as to which foods are hot or cold,either between geographical areas or even within a single community. However, coldfoods usually include most vegetables, tropical fruits, dairy products and low-prestigemeats. Hot foods include chili peppers, garlic, onion, most grains, temperate fruits,high-prestige meats, oils and alcoholic beverages. A number of investigators havereported that food beliefs relating to the hot/cold classification have persisted amongsome groups of Mexican-Americans, although they may not be labeled as such byrespondents (Acosta and Aranda, 1972; Clark, 1959; Bruhn and Pangborn, 1971). Inthe present study, we included food beliefs in our assessment of dietary change byquestioning respondents about foods avoided during specific illnesses or conditions.

The objectives of the study were as follows:To compare food habits, dietary patterns of preschool children, and the extent of

dietary change between migrant and nonmigrant first-generation Mexican-Americanfamilies. Because these two groups differ in their degree of contact with Mexico, sucha comparison permits an evaluation of the influence of cultural contact.

To determine the degree of change in the three components of dietary accultura-tion, that is, changes in consumption of traditional, new, and basic foods, and toexamine the interrelationships between the three components and the socioeconomicfactors associated with each. The role of bilingual children within the family isincluded in this analysis.

To determine the prevalence of traditional food avoidances and the socioeconomicfactors associated with them

The nutritional consequences of these aspects of dietary change have beenexamined in a companion article (Dewey, Strode and Fitch, 1984).

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MEXICAN-AMERICAN DIET CHANGES 13

METHODS

Families were selected from four sites in the Sacramento Valley in northern Califor-nia. A family was considered Mexican-American if the female head-of-household wasborn in Mexico. "Nonmigrant" families were chosen from two county-run housingprojects for low-income families which were known to have a high percentage ofMexican-Americans. Because these families were first contacted and interviewed inthe winter months (January-April 1982), they were considered to be "nonmigrant.""Migrant" families were chosen from two state-run migrant camps which are openonly during the May-October farm season. (The distinction between "migrant" and"nonmigrant" is described further under "Family Characteristics," below). In all fourlocations, permission to visit homes was obtained from the appropriate officials.

Nonmigrant families were chosen by asking all Mexican-American families in thetwo housing projects if they were willing to participate in our study. Of the 82 eligiblehousing-project families eight declined to participate and five could not be found athome after three contact attempts, leaving 69 families who participated in the study.Eighty-nine migrant families were selected at random from 191 families living in themigrant camps. Of the families selected, six were not originally from Mexico, sevendeclined to participate, and five could not be found at home after three visits atdifferent times during the day and evening, leaving 71 participating families. Thesefamilies were interviewed during the summer (July-September, 1982). Because thepercentage of families who declined to participate was low (nine percent), it is likelythat sample bias due to this factor was minimal.

All families were interviewed in the home by one of five bilingual interviewers. Theinterviewers were students in nutrition, trained by the first author during several"practice" interviews. The study questionnaire was pretested with 11 families living ina third migrant camp not included in the sample. Following the pretest, the question-naire was simplified, so that the final interview consisted of four sections: informationon family structure and demography, migration patterns, employment, education,income and ability to speak English; questions regarding the extent of dietary changeexperienced by the female head-of-household since coming to the U.S. (this includeda "dietary change questionnaire" in which the respondent indicated whether herpresent consumption of each of 54 different foods or food types was greater, less thanor the same as it had been in Mexico); questions regarding the family's food practicesand the respondent's beliefs with respect to food avoidances during pregnancy,lactation, and illnesses of children (diarrhea and fever); and a food frequency ques-tionnaire in which the respondent indicated how often her preschool child (if any)consumed each of 19 foods or food types. If more than one child was aged two to sixyears, the one closest to age four was selected for this questioning. The interview wasdirected at the female head-of-household, but other family members often partici-pated as well.

Following the interview, anthropometric measurements were made for all familymembers willing to be so examined. These measurements included height, weight,and triceps skinfold, and are described in a companion article (Dewey, Strode andFitch, 1984). Generally two visits per family were necessary to complete all parts ofthe study. In return for their cooperation, families were invited to nutrition educationpresentations scheduled to be given after completion of the study (Dewey et al.,1984).

In order to determine whether seasonal differences at the time of the interviewmight have influenced the food frequency results, the nonmigrant families withpreschool children were revisited in the summer (August-September, 1982) by the

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14 K. G. DEWEY, M. A. STRODE AND Y. R. FITCH

same interviewer in order to repeat the food frequency questionnaire. Of the 43families with preschoolers, it was possible to revisit 32.

To examine different components of dietary change, the 54 foods in the dietarychange questionnaire were divided into three groups, basic foods, such as meat, milk,fruits and vegetables, which are common to both American and Mexican cultures;traditional foods, such as tortillas and beans, which are more common to Mexicanculture (identified during the pretest of the study questionnaire); and new foods,primarily processed foods, which are more common to American culture. The degreeof change within each group was assessed by determining the numbers of basic foodsand processed foods for which consumption increased after coming to the U.S.(consumption decreased for few of these foods), and the number of traditional foodsfor which consumption decreased.

All data were analyzed by computer with the Statistical Package for the SocialSciences (Nie et ah, 1975), using chi-square, Student t, Pearson product-momentcorrelation, analysis of variance, Mann-Whitney U, and stepwise multiple regressionanalyses.

RESULTS

Family Characteristics

The major difference between migrant and nonmigrant families was in the frequencywith which families visited Mexico after coming to the U.S. Migrant families hadvisited Mexico an average of 3.4 times in the previous five years, compared to only 1.2times among nonmigrants (Table I). It is difficult to distinguish between a move and avisit to Mexico. Among migrant families, who must move out of the migrant camp

TABLE IFamily characteristics

Migrantsmean (S.D., no.)

Nonmigrantsmean (S.D., no.)

Age of mother (years) 33.3 (11.1,70)Age of father (years) 36.6(11.4,65)Education of mother (years of school completed) 5.1 (2.9,68)Education of father (years of school completed) 5.3 (2.9,63)Years in U.S., mother 8.2 (5.7,71)Years in U.S., father 12.9 (9.8,64)Age mother first came to U.S. (years) 25.0 (11.1,70)Age father first came to U.S. (years) 23.4 (10.9,64)Months employed, mother 4,1 (3.3,68)Months employed, father 7.4 (2.3,64)Weekly income when employed $394 (162,70)Estimated annual income . $11,099 (5999,69)Weekly food expenditures $107 (46,70)Household size (no. persons) 4.6 (1.7,71)Family size (no. children of mother) 3.4 (2.6,70)Number of moves' in past five years 7.1 (4.0,71)Number of visits to Mexico in past five years 3.4 (2.1,69)

33.1 (8.2,68)35.7 (9.5,56)4.7 (3.0,69)5.0 (3.4,57)8.4 (4.9,69)

11.9(6.9,55)24.6 (8.1,68)23.9 (9.4,53)2.4 (2.7,69)a

7.9 (3.3,59)$273 (91,51)a

$8,768 (3622,55)"$87 (36,54)b

5.4 (1.9,69)b

4.0 (2.2,69)2.6 (2.8,69)a

1.2 (1.4,69)a

'Significant atp < 0.001, Student Mest."Significant at/? s 0.01, Student /-test.CA move was defined as a change in residence to a location outside of the town in which they were living.

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MEXICAN-AMERICAN DIET CHANGES 15

each year, 59 percent returned to Mexico each year, and another 11 percent migratedto border areas in California, Texas, and Arizona. Nonmigrant families generallyconsidered themselves to be residents of the local area, with trips to Mexico beingmade primarily to visit relatives. The distinction between migrant and nonmigrant isdifficult to make, however, as there is great variation in residence/migration patterns.We therefore based our operational definition of migrant vs. nonmigrant on thefamily's residence at the time of the interview.

In most other respects, migrant and nonmigrant families were similar. The majorityof parents in both groups were seasonally employed farmworkers (Table II). Prior tocoming to the U. S., 52 percent of migrant fathers and 70 percent of nonmigrant fatherswere employed in agriculture; in the U.S., 80 percent of migrant fathers and 75percent of nonmigrants were employed in agriculture. Among mothers, 79-87 percentwere not employed in Mexico, whereas 67 percent of migrant women and 58 percentof nonmigrants were employed at least part-time in the U.S. Educational levels of theparents were low, with an average of about five years of schooling among bothmigrants and nonmigrants. Length of residence in the U.S. varied from one to 42years, with an average of 12-13 years among fathers and 8 years among mothers.Fathers often migrate to the U.S. for several years before bringing their families.

About two thirds of both migrant and nonmigrant families came from three states incentral Mexico: Jalisco, Michoacan, and Guanajuato. Another 13-14 percent camefrom other states in central Mexico, with the remainder of families coming fromnorthern Mexico. Because of the sensitivity of the issue, families were not askedwhether they had legal status or were undocumented workers; residency papers arenot required in the migrant camps or housing projects. The primary motivation formigrating to the U.S. was economic, although many families also had close relatives

TABLE IIEmployment and use of social services

Employment of motherNot employedAgriculturalOther (child-care, cannery, factory)

Employment of fatherAgriculturalMechanic or truck driverFactory or canneryOther (construction, merchant, other)

Use of social and health serviceswithin past five yearsGeneral assistance (welfare)Food stampsW.I.C.UnemploymentMediCalMedical insurance

Migrants(percent of families)

In U.S.

(N = 70)335711

(N= 66)801425

17 (N--39 (N =37 (N =79 (N =31 (N--23(AT =

In Mexico

(N = 71)797

14

(N = 63)5256

37

= 71)= 71)= 71)= 71)= 70)= 71)

Nonmigrants(percent of families)

In U.S.

(N = 69)424415

(N = 56)752

167

15 (JV =62 (N =41 (N =91 (N =61 (W =20 ( # =

In Mexico

(N = 69)87

111

(N = 53)7022

26

= 68)= 69)a

= 69)= 69)= 69)b

= 69)

= 7.3, p< 0.01.= 12.1, p < 0.001.

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16 K. G. DEWEY, M. A. STRODE AND Y. R. FITCH

living in the U.S. The reported average weekly income (when working) was $394among migrants and $273 among nonmigrants (Table I). Because of the seasonality ofemployment, annual income was low, with an estimated average of $11,099 amongmigrants and $8,768 among nonmigrants. These figures do not include unemploymentcompensation, however, which most families had received within the past five years(Table II).

Table II shows the percentage of families who had received social or health servicesin the past five years. Migrant families were less likely to have received food stamps orMediCal, probably due to greater mobility or less familiarity with such services. Mostfamilies obtained health care from local public health clinics.

Parents were asked about their ability to speak English and their use of mass media.Only 5 percent of mothers and 18 percent of fathers spoke English. There was littledifference between migrants and nonmigrants. The majority of families watchedtelevison often (an average of three hours per day), primarily Spanish channels orboth Spanish and English channels. Only seven percent of families received news-papers.

Food Practices

In order to examine potential factors related to dietary change and the role of childrenin fostering change, a number of questions were asked regarding food practices.Virtually all families (96 percent) purchased food at large supermarkets, primarily dueto their accessibility and lower costs. Children often accompanied their parents whenshopping, and about half of them asked for specific foods, such as (in order ofpreference) candy, cookies, ice cream, breakfast cereals, snack chips, soft drinks, andcakes. Most mothers stated that they usually (49 percent) or sometimes (39 percent)bought the foods that their children requested, with 3 percent refusing to do soand 10 percent stating that they did not buy sweets. In 31 percent of the families, themother stated that her children had asked for foods that she had never eaten. Whenthis occurred, she usually continued to buy those foods. When faced with foodslabeled in English, about 38 percent of mothers bought only foods they recognized,another 38 percent relied on their children, husbands or others to translate, and theremainder tried to decipher the picture or bought the foods and tried them at home.

On the average, families ate out at restaurants once or twice a month, thoughchildren often ate away from home at schools or day-care centers. Fast-food res-taurants were most likely to be visited; only a third of the families visited Mexicanrestaurants. On special occasions, nearly all families prepared traditional Mexicandishes. The children, however, seemed to like Mexican and American food equallywell. About half of all families prepared their own flour tortillas. Half of the nonmig-rants but only a quarter of migrant families prepared their own corn tortillas.

Mothers were also asked about their sources of nutrition information. About halfhad had some instruction in nutrition, primarily from the WIC (Special SupplementalFood Program for Women, Infants and Children) program or from health carepersonnel. These sources plus family members (for example grandmothers) were themost common sources of nutrition information and advice.

Food Frequencies of Preschool Children

The frequency of consumption of specific foods and food groups among migrant andnonmigrant preschool children is shown in Table III. In general, consumption ofprotein foods, grain products, and dairy products was adequate, with an average of 25,

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MEXICAN-AMERICAN DIET CHANGES 17

TABLE IIIFrequency of consumption of selected foods by preschool children (times consumed per week)

Protein foodsPoultryBeef and porkFrankfurtersLunch meatsEggsBeansPeanut butter

Grain productsTortillasBreakfast cerealsBread

Fruits and vegetablesFruitsFruit juicesVegetables

Dairy productsMilkCheese

OtherAtole (corn gruel drink)Commercial noncarbonated drinksSoft drinksCoffee

Migrants(N = 37)

mean (S.D.)

2.2 (1.8)2.6 (2.1)3.2 (4.8)1.8 (2.9)4.7 (3.6)5.2 (5.1)1.8 (2.4)

9.2 (7.1)5.2 (3.6)5.3 (4.4)

7.8 (7.4)6.0 (6.5)5.1 (5.3)

14.0 (9.0)4.4 (6.3)

0.8 (1.4)7.3 (9.5)3.3 (3.7)0.6 (1.7)

Nonmigrants(N = 43)

mean (S.D.)

1.6(0.8)3.1 (3.3)4.1 (3.8)°1.7 (2.0)7.6 (3.8)b

6.4 (4.0)2.7 (3.9)

10.2 (6.5)5.3 (3.4)7.8 (4.4)

6.8 (4.1)5.6 (4.0)2.8 (2.3)

19.4 (8.4)3.3 (4.2)

1.1 (2.1)3.7 (5.7)"1.7 (2.2)"0.4 (1.7)

"p < 0.05, Mann-Whitney U test.bp < 0.001, Mann-Whitney U test.

22, and 21 servings per week, respectively. Within the protein group, frankfurterswere the most frequently consumed source of meat. In the fruit and vegetable group,most children consumed fruit and fruit juice quite often (13 servings per week), butvegetable consumption was low (3.9 servings per week).

Mothers were also asked what type of tortillas, cereal, bread, milk and juice theirchildren consumed. Most of the children ate corn tortillas (58 percent) or both corn andflour tortillas (26 percent). About 47 percent of the children ate breakfast cerealscontaining a high proportion of sugar, and 50 percent of the children ate sweet rolls asa type of bread. Whole-wheat bread was rarely consumed, and no child drank low-fatmilk. The type of juice consumed was divided about equally between fresh or frozenand canned, sweetened juices. The above practices did not differ significantlybetween migrant and nonmigrant children.

Migrant preschoolers consumed commercial noncarbonated drink mixes, softdrinks (Table III) and sweet rolls (x2 = 6.9, p < 0.01) more often than nonmigrants,but ate eggs and frankfurters less often. These differences were apparent even whenseasonal changes in food consumption were taken into account: A comparison ofwinter and summer consumption data among nonmigrants showed that the onlysignificant changes were decreases in the frequency of consumption of peanut butter,bread and cheese during the summer.

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18 K. G. DEWEY, M. A. STRODE AND Y. R. FITCH

The relationships between frequency of consumption of the foods in Table HI andseveral socioeconomic factors were examined using the Mann-Whitney U test. Fre-quency of consumption of peanut butter and fruit was associated with the mother'slength of residence in the United States. Children of families who visited Mexico moreoften consumed fruit and cheese more often. The frequency of consumption of beans,vegetables and milk was lower among children of higher-income families. However,when related to per capita weekly food expenditures, the only significant differencewas that children of families with higher food expenditures consumed atole (corn-based drink) more often.

Dietary Change Among Adults

When mothers were asked how their over-all diet had changed since moving to the

TABLE IVChanges in consumption of specific basic, traditional, and new foods

Basic foodsPoultryBeef and porkFish and seafoodEggsMilkCheeseFruitJuiceVegetablesBreadRicePastaOil

New foodsLunch meatsFrankfurtersCanned fishBreakfast cerealsChips (snacks)CookiesCanned juiceFrozen juiceCanned fruitCanned vegetablesFrozen vegetablesIce creamSoft drinksCanned soupPackaged soupPudding and gelatinCake mixesFrozen dinners

Migrants

I, SSI, DSS, ID, SS, II

sI, SssS.I

IIN, IIISIN, IN, INNS, ISNN, SS, IN, IN

Non-migrants

]11<I]1111

[[[, N5,1[[[[[[SSI

III, NIIN, IINN, INNIN, II, NIIN, IN

Migrants

Traditional foodsTortillasBeansChili peppersSweet rollsLardLicuados (fruit drinks)Agua de arroz

(rice drink)CoffeeAvocadoNopales (Opuntia spp.)

(cactus)Chayote (Sechum edule,

fruit used asvegetable)

Sweet potatoJicama (Exogonium

bracteatum, rootvegetable)

Liver and organ meatsChorizo (sausage)Chicharrones (fried

pork rind)Mexican dishes

(tacos, etc.)Mole (special

main dish)Chile rellenos

(stuffed chilis)Posole (stew-like main

dish)Tamales

SSSSSS

D, SS, NS

D, S

DD

DD, SS, D

D, S

S

S

S, D

S, DD

Non-migrants

SSsS, DsI

I, NS, II, S

D

DD

DD, ID, S

D, S

S, I

D, S

D, S

S,DD, S

I = consumption has increased since moving to the U.S.D = consumption has decreased since moving to the U.S.S = consumption has stayed the same since moving to the U.S.N = does not consume.

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MEXICAN-AMERICAN DIET CHANGES 19

U.S., 61 percent of migrants and 68 percent of nonmigrants stated that it hadimproved while only 3 percent and 1 percent, respectively, stated that it hadgotten worse. The remainder (37 percent and 30 percent) stated that it had remainedthe same. Of those who responded that their diet had improved, 69 percent stated thatit had changed in both quality and quantity. As an indicator of affluence, mothers wereasked how often they ate meat in Mexico and the U.S.: The average in Mexico was 3.6times per week and in the U.S. it was 4.4 times per week.

The responses to the dietary change questionnaire are summarized in Table IV. Ingeneral, the most common responses were that consumption of basic foods increasedor stayed the same, consumption of traditional foods decreased or stayed the same,and consumption of new (processed) foods increased, or they were not consumed atall. When asked why their consumption of basic and new foods shown in Table IV hadincreased, the most common responses were that they were more available in theU.S., that they had more money with which to buy them, or that they were lessexpensive in the U.S. than in Mexico. The major reason given for decreased consump-tion of traditional foods was that they were less available in the U.S. However, fewstated that their consumption of the basic Mexican staples, tortillas and beans, hadchanged.

Over-all change in consumption of basic, traditional, and new foods is shown inTable V. On the average, there was an increase in 5.9 out of 13 basic foods (46percent), a decrease in 6.9 out of 21 traditional foods (33 percent), and an increase in8.2 out of 18 new foods (44 percent). Nonmigrants were more likely to have increasedtheir consumption of basic and new foods, but were similar to migrants with respect tothe decrease in consumption of traditional foods.

The degree of change in basic foods was highly correlated with change in new foods(r = 0.53, p < 0.001), but neither was correlated with the degree of change in tradi-tional foods. In addition, those mothers who stated that their over-all diet hadimproved experienced a significantly greater increase in consumption of basic and newfoods (x2 = 14.6; p < 0.001 and x2 - 7.2, p < 0.05 respectively) but they were nodifferent with respect to the decrease in consumption of traditional foods thanmothers who stated that their diet was the same or worse.

TABLE VMean change in consumption of basic, traditional and new foods

Number of basic foodsfor which consumption hasincreased since moving tothe U.S. (maximum of 13)

Number of traditional foodsfor which consumption hasdecreased since moving tothe U.S. (maximum of 21)

Number of new (processed)foods for which consumption hasincreased since moving tothe U.S. (maximum of 18)

Total sample(N = 140)

mean (S.D.)

5.9 (3.2)

6.9 (4.2)

8.2 (3.6)

Migrants(N = 71)

mean (S.D.)

4.4 (3.0)

6.9 (4.6)

7.2 (3.6)

Nonmigrants(N = 69)

mean (S.D.)

7.5 (2.7)a

6.9 (3.8)

9.3 (3.2)*

"p < 0.001, Student t-test.

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20 K. G. DEWEY, M. A. STRODE AND Y. R. FITCH

TABLE VIRelation of change in consumption of basic, traditional, and new foods to socioeconomic factors"

I. Increased consumption of basic foodsVariable Partial correlation coefficient p-valueMigrant/nonmigrantb -0.46 0.0000Mother's educational level -0.31 0.0001Mother's English-speaking ability 0.28 0.0004

N = 128; F = 21.9; R2 = 0.34

II. Decreased consumption of traditional foodsVariable Partial correlation coefficient p-valueMother's educational level 0.22 0.0106

N = 128; F = 6.7; R2 = 0.05

III. Increased consumption of new foodsVariable Partial correlation coefficient p-valueEnglish-speaking ability of children 0.25 0.0047Migrant/nonmigrant" -0.23 0.0098

N= 128; F= 10.7; ft2 = 0.14

"Variables included at the p < 0.05 level in a stepwise multiple regression with the following potentialindependent variables: migrant/nonmigrant, number of visits to Mexico in past five years, English-speaking ability of children, children in school since moving to U.S., mother's educational level, mother'sEnglish-speaking ability, mother's length of residence in U.S., mother's age, weekly income whenworking, estimated annual income, hours/day mother watches television, hours/day children watchtelevision, age when mother first came to the U.S.

bSame direction of difference as in Table V.

The degree of change in each of the three categories (basic, traditional, and newfoods) was related to a number of socioeconomic variables, as shown in Table VI. Inaddition to the differences between migrants and nonmigrants shown in Table V,increase in basic foods was positively correlated with the mother's English-speakingability, but negatively correlated with her educational level. In contrast, motherswith more education experienced more of a decrease in traditional foods than lesseducated mothers. Increased consumption of new foods was most strongly corre-lated with the percent of the mother's children who spoke English. None of the threedietary change variables was related to age, income, the mother's length of residencein the U.S., age of the mother when she first came to the U.S. or the number of hoursthat she or her children watched television.

TABLE VIIPercent of mothers mentioning traditional food avoidances" for

diarrhea, fever, pregnancy and lactation

Migrants Nonmigrants

Diarrhea (children) 41% 23%b

Fever (children) 78% 73%Pregnancy 31% 23%Lactation 52% 24%c

"Foods other than those that might be proscribed by health careproviders.

V = 4.75; p < 0.05.c-J2 = 9.13;p<0.01.

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MEXICAN-AMERICAN DIET CHANGES 21

Food Avoidances

Table VII lists the percentage of mothers who mentioned traditional food avoid-ances, that is, avoidance of foods other than those which might be proscribed byhealth care providers. Traditional food avoidances were more common amongmigrants than among nonmigrants, especially avoidances mentioned for diarrheaand lactation. Specific foods mentioned more than twice (number of respondentsmentioning each is given in parentheses) were as follows: for children with diarrhea,mothers stated that foods such as fruit juices (12), egg (8), tortillas (3), banana (3)and chili peppers (3) should be avoided; children with fever were not given milk (69),solid foods (23), egg (11), tortillas (6), "greasy" foods (5) and "cold" or "cool" foods(4); foods avoided during pregnancy included chili peppers (10), fish (7), acidic fruits(4), avocado (3) and pork (3), while during lactation mothers cited chili peppers (13),beans (13), nopales (prickly pear cactus, Opuntia species) (9), cucumber (5), avo-cado (5), "cold" or "cool" foods (4), and acidic fruits (3) as foods to be avoided.

There was no relationship between traditional food avoidances and length ofresidence in the U.S., maternal age, frequency of visits to Mexico, income, maternalage when she first came to the U.S., English speaking ability, or whether the motherhad had any instruction in nutrition. Only two variables were related to foodavoidances. These relationships were statistically significant only for food avoid-ances during pregnancy: mothers having children of school-age at any time sincecoming to the U.S., and mothers with less education were less likely to havetraditional food avoidances during pregnancy Of2 = 4.8, and^2 = 5.5, respectively,/?< 0.05). These differences were apparent even when controlling for the effect of theother variable.

DISCUSSION

Migrant and nonmigrant families in this study differed significantly in a number ofways. As expected, migrant families moved more often and returned to Mexico moreoften than nonmigrants. Somewhat unexpectedly, migrants had higher estimatedincomes and food expenditures, despite fewer household members. Mothers inmigrant families worked more months of the year than nonmigrant mothers, whichcontributed to higher family incomes. However, migrant families were less likely tohave received food stamps or MediCal, probably due to their greater mobility. Whilefood habits of migrants and nonmigrants were similar for the most part, migrantpreschool children consumed commercial noncarbonated drink mixes, soft drinksand sweet rolls more often, but eggs and frankfurters less often, than nonmigrantpreschoolers. In both groups, consumption of protein foods, grain products, dairyproducts, and fruit was adequate, while vegetable consumption was low. Infrequentconsumption of vegetables is not surprising given the age group considered (two tosix years). Few differences were found in the frequency of consumption of foodswhen these were related to socioeconomic variables. Children whose families hadbeen in the U.S. longer consumed peanut butter and fruit more often, but otherwisetheir diets were similar. Children of higher-income families did not have a greaterfrequency of consumption of any foods on the list. It should be noted that all of thechildren were from low-income families, so it would be unlikely to find dietarydifferences due to income in such a relatively homogeneous group.

The most interesting differences between migrant and nonmigrant families werethose concerning the extent of dietary change. First, it should be mentioned that the

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22 K. G. DEWEY, M. A. STRODE AND Y. R. FITCH

dietary change questionnaire utilized has a number of limitations. Respondents werenot asked how often they consumed each of the foods in Mexico and in the U.S., butonly the direction of change (that is, more, less, or the same amount). Thus the resultsdo not permit quantitative assessments of dietary intake before and after moving tothe U.S. Our purpose was to document how consumption had changed, not toevaluate the adequacy of the diet. It was clear from the interviews, however, thatmost respondents experienced what they considered to be an improvement in theirdiet (61 percent of migrants and 68 percent of nonmigrants) since moving to the U.S.,whereas only two respondents stated that their diet had gotten worse. Immink,Sanjur and Burgos (1983), using quantitative measures, also found better dietsamong Puerto Rican migrants in the U.S. than in Puerto Rico. As we hypothesized,there was more change in consumption of basic and new foods than in traditionalfoods. On the average there was an increase in 46 percent of the basic foods and 44percent of the new foods, but a decrease in only 33 percent of the traditional foods onthe list. This was especially apparent with respect to the Mexican staples, tortillas andbeans: the vast majority of respondents stated that there had been no change in theirconsumption of these items. There was a striking difference in the degree of changein basic and new foods between migrants and nonmigrants, with nonmigrants statingmore often that their consumption of foods in these two groups had increased.Migrants and nonmigrants were similar, however, in the extent to which consump-tion of traditional foods had decreased.

While the degree of change in basic foods was correlated with change in new foods,there was no correlation between the degree of change in traditional foods and thedegree of change in either basic or new foods. This confirms the finding of Pelto,Pelto and Lung'aho (1981) that dietary change is not a single continuum fromtraditonal to modern, but is rather a function of two or more independent trends.

If dietary change is comprised of several different aspects or trends, one can askwhether these aspects are related differently to various socioeconomic variables. Inthis study, increased consumption of basic foods was most strongly related to therespondent's status as migrant or nonmigrant, her educational level (a negativecorrelation) and her English-speaking ability (a positive correlation). It is possiblethat the inverse association with educational level is due to a lower consumption ofbasic foods in Mexico among less-educated respondents, who would thus have thepotential for a greater degree of increase after moving to the U.S. The variables moststrongly associated with increased consumption of new foods were the English-speaking ability of the respondent's children and her status as migrant or nonmig-rant. We see here the potential impact of bilingual children in immigrant families,which will be discussed further below. Decreased consumption of traditional foods,on the other hand, was significantly related to only one variable, the respondent'seducational level .Those with more education experienced a greater loss of traditionalfoods than those with less education. It is likely that there is a shift away fromtime-consuming traditional recipes in conjunction with increased education andemployment.

Thus, the three components of dietary change identified here are influenced bydifferent socioeconomic variables. It is important to note, however, that because ofthe high degree of co-variation between the socioeconomic variables examined (forexample, migrants have visited Mexico more often and have higher incomes, mater-nal age is inversely related to education), one cannot completely discount variablesnot included in the multiple regression. Because of this, it is necessary to look morecarefully at two variables in particular, degree of contact with Mexico (number ofvisits), and length of residence in the U.S. Although frequency of contact with

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MEXICAN-AMERICAN DIET CHANGES 23

Mexico did not appear as a significant variable in the multiple regressions, it is highlycorrelated with the migrant/nonmigrant variable, and thus cannot be dismissed as animportant component of change in basic and new foods. The respondent's length ofresidence in the U.S., however, was not associated with any of the three componentsof dietary change.

The role of children of immigrant families in fostering dietary change deservesfurther discussion. Children in Mexican-American families are more likely to bebilingual than parents, and are more exposed to the dominant American culturethrough schools and the media. Because of this, they may act as "cultural brokers" inpromoting acculturation (Melville, 1980). We found that children frequently accom-panied their parents when shopping and often requested specific foods. Sometimesthese were foods that the parents had never eaten. In almost all cases, mothersresponded that they would buy the foods their children requested. Children werealso instrumental in helping parents select foods labeled in English. These findingshelp to explain why the variable most strongly correlated with the degree of change innew foods was the English-speaking ability of the children.

Traditional food avoidances were found to be quite common among respondentsin this study, with migrants citing such avoidances more often than nonmigrants. Themost common avoidance was to withhold milk from children when they have a fever.Many of the foods mentioned could be associated with the hot/cold dichotomy,although respondents did not necessarily label them in this way. Diarrhea is tradi-tionally thought of as an "imbalance" of hot and cold (Currier, 1966). Thus, foodsthat are either extremely hot or extremely cold would be avoided. Of the foodsavoided for diarrhea, fruit juices, tortillas and banana are considered cold, while chilipeppers are very hot (Currier, 1966; Clark, 1959). Fever is a hot illness. Some of thefoods avoided for fever are considered cold, most notably milk, but others areneutral, such as egg and "solid foods." Many mothers appeared to generalize to allillnesses the dietary restrictions recommended by health care providers for gastroin-testinal infections. This may explain some of the avoidances cited for fever. Preg-nancy is also a hot condition (Currier, 1966), and it is traditionally thought that coldfoods may upset the system too much. Certain hot foods, however, are also avoidedduring pregnancy because they are thought to cause diaper rash in the infant orotherwise impair health (Clark, 1959). The foods mentioned by respondents in thisstudy to be avoided during pregnancy were generally either hot (chili peppers) orcold (fish, acidic fruits and avocado). Likewise, during lactation, cold foods arethought to reduce the flow of milk (Currier, 1966), and of the foods mentioned,nopales (Opuntia spp.), cucumber, avocado and acidic fruits are cold. Of the otherfoods avoided during lactation, chili peppers and beans are thought to upset theinfant's digestive system. These latter avoidances are not unique to Mexican-Americans (Lawrence, 1980).

There were few significant associations between expression of traditional foodavoidances and socioeconomic variables. Respondents who had lived in the U.S.longer, who had more education, who spoke English, or who had had instruction innutrition were no less likely to mention such avoidances. It appears that these beliefsare not as subject to change after migration to the U.S. as are patterns of foodconsumption.

To summarize, we have found that there has been a considerable retention oftraditional foods among Mexican-Americans, who not only have a strong ethnicsubculture in California, but are also more able to maintain close ties to their nativecountry than are other immigrant groups. This has been accompanied by anincreased consumption of both basic and new foods after moving to the U.S., more so

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24 K. G. DEWEY, M. A. STRODE AND Y. R. FITCH '

among nonmigrants than migrants. Most respondents attributed changes in their dietto increased income and increased availability of many foods in the U.S.

There are a number of implications for nutrition education from these results.First, it would be wise to reinforce most Mexican food habits, as their diet istraditionally high in complex carbohydrates and a high value is placed on consump-tion of fresh fruits and vegetables. Second, Mexican-Americans could benefit fromincreased familiarization with the many choices of new foods available to them in theU.S. For example, emphasis could be placed on low-fat dairy products, whole-grainproducts, and fruit juices rather than drink mixes or soft drinks. Finally, the potentialrole of bilingual children in fostering dietary change within immigrant familiesshould be recognized, as it might be most effective to reach younger age groups insuch populations.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Michele Gonzalez, Rosalinda Ramirez and ElizabethZoBell in carrying out the interviews. We also thank the directors and managers of the housing projects,migrant camps, and camp day-care centers, and especially the families who participated, for theircooperation and friendliness.

REFERENCES

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Bruhn, C. M. and R. M. Pangborn (1971). Food habits of migrant farm workers in California. J. Am. Diet.Assoc. 59, 347-355.

Chassy, J. P., A. G. van Veen and F. W. Young (1967). The application of social science research methodsto the study of food habits and food consumption in an industrializing area. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 20,56-64.

Clark, M. (1959). Health in the Mexican-American Culture. University of California Press, Berkeley,California.

Currier, R. L. (1966). The hot-cold syndrome and symbolic balance in Mexican and Spanish-Americanfolk medicine. Ethnology 5, 251-263.

Dewey, K. G. E. S. Metallinos, M. A. Strode, E. M. All. Y. R. Fitch, M. Holguin, J. A. Kraus and L. J.McNicholas (1984). Combining nutrition research and nutrition education: dietary change amongMexican-American families. J. Nutr. Educ. (In press).

Dewey, K. G., M. A. Strode and Y. R. Fitch (1984). Anthropometry of migrant and nonmigrantMexican-American children and adults in northern California. Ecol. Food. Nutr. 14, 25-35.

Grivetti, L. E. and M. B. Paquette (1978). Nontraditional ethnic food choices among first generationChinese in California. J. Nutr. Educ. 10, 109-112.

Gunta, S. P. (1975). Changes in the food habits of Asian Indians in the United States: a case study. Sociol.Soc. Res. 60, 87-99.

Immink, M. D. G., S. Sanjur and M. Burgos (1983). Nutritional consequences of U.S. migration patternsamong Puerto Rican women. Ecol. Food Nutr. 13, 139-148.

Jerome, N. W. (1980). Diet and acculturation; the case of Black American immigrants. In N. W. Jerome,R. F. Kandel and G. H. Pelto (Eds.), Nutritional Anthropology. Redgrave, Pleasantville, N.Y.,pp. 275-326.

Lawrence, R. A. (1980). Breast-Feeding: A Guide for the Medical Profession. C. V. Mosby, St. Louis,Missouri.

Melville, M. B. (1980). Selective acculturation of female Mexican migrants. In M. B. Melville (Ed.), Twicea Minority: Mexican-American Women. C. V. Mosby, St. Louis, Missouri, pp. 155-163.

Nie, N. H., C. H. Hull, J. G. Jenkins, K. Steinbrenner and D. H. Bent (1975). Statistical Package for theSocial Sciences. McGraw-Hill, New York.

Pelto, G. H., P. J. Pelto and M. S. Lung'aho (1981). "Modern" and "traditional" food use in WestFinland: an example of quantitative pattern analysis. Nutr. Res. 1, 63-71.

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