The reason for me choosing this topic is because of my personal experiences and my family history. In my personal experience cooking has really helped with me distressing and feeling good with myself afterwards. And I believe that this is similar to many others who cook not only for themselves but for others as well. And in my family history I have my mom, sisters, grandmas, aunties, and cousins who have cook for many traditional/cultural events. And they always seem to be having a good time while making the traditional foods. 

In the article, “Sharing one skin,” By Jeanette Armstrong She talks about many things that are a part of the Okanagan community and culture. Such as talking about her Identity and responsibility in her Okanagan Community. She then goes on about Sanity, Self, Place, and in this part of the article it talks about the 4 selves of the Okanagan People. And these 4 selves are the physical self, the emotional self, the thinking/ intellectual self, and the spiritual self. Lastly she brings up community, and the different ways that people are connected and how some communities are created. 

Memories and stories are connected to our land as described by B.Toastie in the article “How place names impact the way we see landscape,”. Certain places can remind different people about the history of their ancestors. These memories could be good or they could be bad because of the history of that name. And this is the same for stories that are tied to many different landscapes. But it can also help with understanding parts of our peoples past and beliefs.

In the article it Briefly explains the Meriam Report. This report was an 872 page long report released by the Secretary of the Interior in 1926 Hubert Work, on the living conditions of native americans on reservations. It talked about the Native Americans' exceptionally poor medical, economic, educational and housing conditions on reservations. And this caused higher mortality rates on reservations due to daily living conditions. And the daily living conditions are mostly to blame for high mortality rates because of poor diet, unsanitary homes, far from freshwater, and ill equipped medical facilities. 

In the article it gives us the many different emotional Benefits of Cooking. Such as how it improves emotional well being by letting people be creative which gives people a feeling of personal growth. And it helps you focus on tasks that give you a sense of power and control. It can also be used as meditation because all the tasks that you do such as prepping ingredients, adding seasoning, and monitoring the cooking process can all be used to take your mind off of things throughout your day. And how it can connect you to others within your community and makes you feel like you're providing a needed and useful service. 

In “Is Home Cooking Really Good for the Soul? Science Says Yes”, the article talks about Dr. Michael Kocet, PhD, taking recreational cooking class before he became a doctor. The feedback he got regarding cooking being therapeutic prompted him to wonder why culinary therapy was not offered in health care like other forms of art therapy. He developed and now teaches a course on culinary therapy to counseling, social work, and psychology students and hopes to create enough evidence base to support culinary therapy as a form of health care. He cites several articles related to public health and cooking and lists the benefits of cooking. He offers three tips for reaping the emotional health benefits of cooking.

Bryne, Christine. Is Home Cooking Really Good for the Soul? Science Says Yes. 26 August 2022. Web. 13 December 2023. <https://www.everydayhealth.com/emotional-health/home-cooking-good-for-the-soul/>.

The second article I read was a research article focused on the results of a national youth survey conducted in New Zealand and the relationship between cooking and mental health, diet quality and family relationships. The results showed that those who cooked had better mental health, stronger family connections, better health overall because they decide what to put into their bodies when cooking, an opportunity to develop life skills and contribute to their families in a positive way.

Jennifer Utter, PhD, et al. "Adolescent Cooking Abilities and Behaviors: Associations With Nutrition and Emotional Well-Being." Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior 48.1 (2016): 35-41. Web. 13 December 2023. <https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1499404615006594>.

The video, Benefits of Cooking for Mental Health, quickly summarizes why cooking can be beneficial to your mental health. A few cooking benefits mentioned are fostering social interaction, improved social interaction, improved self-esteem and self-confidence, allows for creativity and routine for a peace of mind. The video also indirectly promotes the Mediterranean diet.