How Arab Americans Manage to Stay Healthy and Well

posted on: Mar 4, 2020

By: Ala Abed-Rabbo/Arab America Contributing Writer

Arab Americans have ties to one or more of the Arab League countries, whether they are cultural, ethnic, linguistic, familial, or heritage bonds to their ancestries.

It is important for people to care for their health; this is how most Arab Americans do so in terms of following specific healthy guidelines, such as diets, exercise, social aspects, and spiritual beliefs.

Arab Americans and their Healthy Diet

1. Garlic

Arab Americans mostly believe that garlic is used to treat colds and coughs and other illnesses; therefore, garlic is added to most of the Arab dishes, raw or cooked. It is also known to boost the immune system and help comfort asthma symptoms.

Arab traditional medicine suggested garlic to help cure heart disease, heart attacks, infections, toothache, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, arthritis, and constipation.

2. Olive Oil

Olive oil is profoundly deep-rooted in the Arab culture, where it was industrialized and sold more than 4000 years ago.

To this day, Arab Americans value the essence of olive oil and buy it continually, not only as food intake, but as a liquid fat to nourish the hair and scalp and skin, treat ear pain, relieve arthritis, and more.

3. Lemon

If there a type of fruit one is guaranteed to find at an Arab home, it must be a lemon. Most Arabs believe the citrus fruit is the ‘answer’ to everything; they cut slices and drink it with water in the morning as a solution to exhaustion and detoxification.

Whether someone has a cold, sore throat, or stomach flu, lemon is an essential ingredient as a healing remedy.

4. Fresh Fruit and Vegetables

Many Arabs consume fresh fruits and vegetables as they contain important vitamins, minerals, and plant chemicals and contain a fiber to help protect one against cancer, diabetes, and heart disease.

Also, when a guest visits an Arab home, they are offered fresh fruits along with deserts. Arab cuisine mostly includes vegetables such as okra, carrots, eggplant, zucchini, artichokes, and onions.

5. Zaatar

Zaatar is consumed by Arabs during breakfast blending it with olive oil (named Zaatar w Zeit) to make pies or used with pita bread as a dipping mix.

Also, the culinary herb has health benefits, including its ability to improve the immune system, enhance skin health, build strong bones, increase circulation, clear out the respiratory tracts, calm inflammation, increase energy, better the mood, support memory, and potential to treat chronic diseases.

6. Lentils, Grains, and Beans

In Arab cooking, lentil is one of the central beans used in dishes, whether in soups, with vegetables, or only bread.

Moreover, the edible legume is known for being rich in iron and in other substances such as protein, folate, and fibers, which is good for the heart, digestive system, and a source of protein – it contains copper, phosphorus, manganese, thiamine, potassium, magnesium, zinc, vitamin B6, and vitamin B6.

Also, Arabs include fava beans, chickpeas (garbanzo beans), scarlet runner beans, green peas, lupine beans, white beans, and brown beans, in their dishes. And for a grain source, they love to consume rice next to most of their meals as well as bread.

Arab Americans and their Healthy Ways of Exercise

As many people know, exercise can help keep one’s body fit, where it aids people to lose weight and lessen the risk of some diseases, such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, and high blood pressure.

Therefore, some Arab Americans workout hard to keep their mind and body healthy. Among their exercises – walk daily in the early mornings or the nighttime, hike, go to the gym, do the house chores, and dance (belly dance) or perform a dabke, (see video above), dance as they celebrate during occasions.

Arab Americans and their Social Lives

To most Arab Americans, besides their faith, the family is the second important element in their lives. The love they share towards their household members is powerful, and to many, it is what keeps them going in life and keep a healthy state-of-mind.

The roles of the Arab family members to one another is to care, protect, give, guide, listen, aid, and more, which helps them endure well in terms of preserving good health towards their body and mind.

Many Arab Americans love to provide, take care of, shield, and more for their families as part of their beliefs and culture; most share the same feeling instances towards their friends or people they know as they believe that thoughtfulness is a sign of kindness which helps them keep a vigorous mind for ‘doing good.’

Moreover, therefore, giving, welcoming, inviting, cooking for others, and offering food is vital in the Arab principles. “A host will offer their guest the best they have, and they put their love and appreciation into their meal.”

Many people have heard or aware of Arab people’s generosity and hospitality. When visiting an Arab American or Arab home, it is a matter of honor that an individual receives a warm welcome.

Thus, Arab Americans make sure that all visitors are well greeted, comfortable, seated at the best corners and furniture at the house, and feed with their hands wide open.

Arab Americans and their Spirituality

Some Arab Americans believe that having faith in positive beliefs, comfort, and strength obtained from religion, prayer, and meditation can contribute to healing and maintaining a healthy physical and mental well-being.

Also, Arabs understand that human beings are weak, soft, and may face sicknesses, such as cold or flu, or beyond, so they seek a higher power or religion to help cure in such instances. Such empathetic phrases they may say is, “shafaka Allah,” May God cure you (masculine) or “shafakillah” (feminine).

Arab Americans typically say the word inshAllah (inshallah), which means “God willing” or “if God wills” for events that they hope will happen in the future. Therefore, they leave it to the hands of Allah (God) to relax their own state of mind.

 Moreover, many express their beliefs by thanking God for everything given to them and in order to keep a healthy body and mind by using the phrase “nushkur Allah” or “Alhamdulillah.”

Many wish others robust health, and by so, they say “Allah yisaadak” (masculine) or “Allah yisaadek” (feminine).

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