As part of the health promoters' series of preventive health talks, this past Monday, we spent the morning in San Felipe focusing on the topic of malnutrition and making tortillas. But not just any tortillas... "tortillas nutritivas!" (nutricious tortillas). One of the most common complaints moms have of their often malnourished children is that their kids refuse to eat tortillas. This is the mainstay of the Mayan diet, the one food around which all other foods revolve. So you can understand why a mom would be distressed if her child refused to eat it. The health promoters have come up with a solution to getting kids to eat their tortillas and get more protein in their diet... mixing peanuts, sesame seeds, and sugar into the masa (tortilla dough). Though an expensive solution if cooked for the entire family, it is potentially affordable if moms only make the recipe for their children under age five. Below are some photos of moms learning the new recipes: ---
Recipe #1: Dominga adds crushed peanuts to the corn tortilla masa (dough). ---
The peanut masa is ready to be made into tortillas. ---
Recipe #2: Dominga adds sugar to another batch of corn masa. Once this masa is made into tortillas, sesame seeds will be sprinkled on both sides before they are cooked. ---
A sesame tortilla, ready to be cooked on the "comal" (griddle).
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Moms gather in a neighbor's open-air kitchen to "tortillar" ("to make tortillas"). ---
Tortillas on the comal. ---
Before the tortillas are served, Vicente and Dominga give a talk on how to prevent malnutrition. (Visual aids courtesy of yours truly).---
It is important for moms to give their children de-worming medication every six months after their second birthday. Parasites and worms are one common cause of malnutrition.
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Often moms think that if their child takes a vitamin pill, it will stimulate their appetite and cure their malnutricion. What many don't realize is that if their children eat a variety of fruits and vegetables, they will get all of their necessary vitamins and minerals and won't have to spend money buying vitamin pills.
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Avoid spending money on packaged junk foods such as chips and soda. Fruit is a much more nutricious snack, at a fraction of the cost.---
One mom looks on expectantly... will her child like the peanut tortilla?
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Moms and kids, enjoying their tortillas nutritivas.
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In this photo, a baby, trying to snatch his brother's tortilla... Mikey likes it!
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