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Family Reunion Is Great Time To Review Eating Choices

Tribune photo by MICHAEL SPOONEYBARGER

Clara Adams, Sendy Horne and Jo Hawkins share a smile while making fruit salad at the Smith family reunion.

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By MARY SHEDDEN

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 19, 2008

Family reunions are a staple for many African-American clans.

At most of these annual gatherings, there are a lot of hugs - plus laughter, music and a whole lot of food.

"Food's important, especially to the Smith family," says Eula Smith, who recently coordinated her family's reunion in St. Petersburg. "The first thing when you walk in the house, they'll ask, 'What do you want to eat?' It's all about food and laughter."

But Smith also knows that the wrong amount of some foods can advance the risk of diseases such as diabetes and stroke. That's why her family used this unique intergenerational gathering of 160 relatives to talk about preventing chronic and sometimes deadly illnesses.

Just before a hearty noontime barbecue, nearly 50 family members spent a half-hour hearing a pitch from the American Stroke Association - one of several groups targeting reunions as a prime health education opportunity for African-Americans. Among the participants was Isaac Smith, 63, one of four Smith relatives to suffer a stroke in the past two years.

"I didn't think I'd make it here," says Isaac Smith, who had his speech and ability to walk affected by the mild stroke in July.

The Power to End Stroke presentation didn't admonish relatives for enjoying the ribs and chicken and sweets at the reunion. Instead, it talked about sharing health histories with blood relatives and working on making smarter and healthier day-to-day food and health choices.

"We're finding that we have to use whatever means to get this message out," says Carolyn Swanson, a volunteer with the Stroke Association and a consultant for the 30-member Churches United for a Healthy Congregation. "The purpose is not to spoil the event. ...We want to see them at the next family reunion."

Nationwide, stroke affects 700,000 people a year and is now ranked as the third-leading cause of death for Americans.

But its impact in the black community is startling. The race is at almost twice the risk of first-ever strokes when compared to whites, according to the American Heart Association's 2005 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics report. Non-Hispanic blacks ages 35-54 have four times the relative risk for stroke than that of whites the same age. And the incidence of high blood pressure in African-Americans is the highest in the world.

That statistic doesn't surprise Smith family member Elmira Walters of St. Petersburg, whose 85-year-old mother suffered a massive stroke. Two weeks before being stricken, a doctor told Maggie Graham her blood pressure was so high she should check into a hospital immediately. She ignored the warning and now lives in an assisted-living facility unable to walk and with limited speech.

Walters, who works two jobs, worries that she's going to be stricken on days she feels especially worn down.

"It gets scary. You don't know," says Walters, 50. "You think about stroke every time."

Though she's taken steps with her own diet to be healthier, she's more concerned about changing the food choices for her six grandchildren. She's taken them to visit her ailing mother so they can understand how a stroke can rob people of their independence.

"I keep preaching it all the time," she says.

One of the key targets of the Power to End Stroke campaign is food, and in particular the high-fat, high-calorie soul food common and extremely popular in Southern African-American cultures. Those who make a pledge to learn more about preventing stroke at the reunion received a copy of the American Heart Association's healthy soul-food cookbook. Reunion programs offered through the Hillsborough County Health Department and National Institute of Health's Kidney Disease Education Program also address food choices.

Eula Smith, 64, says the program's approach to better, culturally relevant food appealed to her. Tips on combating weight and health struggles can make a difference to family elders, as well as their children and grandchildren.

"We want to change the next generation," Eula Smith says. "What our parents have, we don't have to follow in those footsteps."

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