Ackee and Saltfish Video from the Caribbean Cooking School - Jamaica series DVD. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWxSPjxTHnY

Acording to the Caribbean Food Emporium Traditional Caribbean Cuisine is healthy because it is made with many unprocessed foods, uses smaller portions of meats, has a high content of fish, beans, and vegetables, and, most of all, because it is an eclectic mix of the best that African, European, Indian, and Chinese cuisines have to offer. Moreover, older West Indians have always been aware of the relationship between food and health. Perhaps the cuisine is healthy due to luck or happenstance. How else can anyone explain why some of the most highly rated medicinal herbs, e.g., ginger, garlic, all spice and hot peppers just happen to be the basic seasonings used in Jamaican cuisine. In this section we will provide information on some of the benefits of some common tropical foods. Cassava or Yucca (also known as manioc and is used to make tapioca) can help prevent heart disease, reduce the risk of cancer, prevent cataracts, and help keep skin smooth. While cassava is not well known in the US it is the world's number two vegetable crop, after potatoes. Cassava is uniquely laden with iron plus vitamin C which you need to help your body to absorb iron. It is also a good source of magnesium which helps to protect your heart, bones, arteries and blood pressure. A half cup of cooked cassava contains 13 percent of the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for women and 30 percent for men. And because it also contains 35 percent of the daily value of vitamin C, the iron in cassava is much easier to absorb. Plantains This favourite of vegetables can help lower blood pressure, prevent and treat ulcers, prevent constipation, decrease the risk of hear disease. While plantains look like large bananas they are as different as apples and oranges. Unlike bananas, plantains need to be cooked before they are eaten. Plantains also pack different nutrients. Ounce for ounce, plantains contain more potassium than bananas. That means a plateful of plantains will reduce high blood pressure.

I don't think its the food that is unhealthy but perhaps being in Europe the way we season ie All Purpose etc can be too much salt as Levi says. Maybe we do not spend enough time in prep due to the busy lives we live. I reckon the saturated fat and deep frying can be an issue. I am not sure if our foods are chemically sprayed even though they come from abroad. We know that despite our greatest efforts the meat has hormones when we buy it. Now the last thing I heard was that the dutch pot due to aluminium was giving us cancer! Yesterday I watched the Food Hospital and they were saying too much BBQ meat is bad for us too! Apparently something to do with the fat and the charcoal producing the burnt effect and its link to cancer! Never knew that so we cant eat too much Jerk now! I know our food is good as it wouldn't be a naturally occurring plant if it were not. For example, Plantain is full of so many wonderful nutrients that it can be classed as a "superfood" (I think they are a myth) but it is never mentioned...Is there a Nutritionist in the house??

What people? Why isn't it good for you? Why are fewer people in African/Caribbean countries obese? And before anyone says I am referring to the affluent people and yes they do exist contrary to what you see or hear in the media.

@Levi if that is the case we can just use less salt and then it shouldn't be a problem, but in reality I think it must be more than that, maybe to much oil or fat

yeah they say its mainly because of all the seasoning we use, it has a high percentage of salt which be know can lead to high blood pressure.

Hold on!!! but wait... are they saying because it is a fast food shop to close in terms of proximity which sells food like Maccy D's, it was closed because of the Schools inabilty to provide the children with decent food?