Native actress struggles with weight

Not in Hollywood, Girl:  A Mohawk and CheeseburgerAfter Dreamkeeper, I became a health nut and stayed away from processed foods. I hated seeing our people portrayed as “a bunch of fat Indians.” I decided not to portray this horrible image any longer. I began to work out to the point of fainting and sickness. This new found perspective brought me into a place where I was concerned not only for my health, but for all Natives. I’m all for “fry-bread power”, but I don’t think anyone should eat it daily. I visit a lot of reservations where foods like fire-hot Cheetos, pizza and Mountain Dew make a meal. On the other hand, I do love banick-bread, macaroni soup and commodity cheese. My mom’s dumpling soup could make any mouth water.

But then I look around myself and see that a lot of our people are over-weight. I did some research and found that over 60% of Native Americans are overweight, and 18% are morbidly obese. I also found that the new generation of children in elementary school has the highest average weight than ever before. When children are obese, it’s time to take a look at things.