Being Alive Well by Naomi Adelson

Author:Naomi Adelson [Adelson, Naomi]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: University of Toronto Press
Published: 2000-03-13T05:00:00+00:00

The Nutritional Value of Iyimiichim

As suggested in the story of Kakannapitat, the nutritional value of meat is connected to the significance of the animal powers or spirits. The larger and more powerful animals have a greater nutritional value and are thus viewed as stronger foods. Small birds have minimal nutritional value relative to the meat of either caribou or bear. Small birds are rarely eaten, so ranking begins with a more common food, the ptarmigan. Ptarmigan, a member of the pheasant family and fairly common in the region, is considered among the weakest forms of food and is ranked even below fish. Above fish are the larger migratory fowl such as ducks and Canada geese, then small game animals such as otter and porcupine, and on up to caribou, which ‘is the strongest meat of all the wildlife.’ Many of the older adults with whom I spoke discussed the relative strength of animal meats and cooking broth in relation to what one should eat or drink if one hasn’t had food for a significant period of time.

Caribou meat was the strongest, as it was said in the past. If someone is almost starving to death, it was dangerous for them to eat caribou meat because it is too strong. It would kill him if he doesn’t watch what he eats, it is better if he starts little by little, not to eat a large amount of food the first time because the meat is too strong – it would shock and kill him if the weak person eats it first, if he is dying from hunger. But they would know exactly what to do with a person, they would only give him a little, they would know how much to give that would be just right, they would start with a little amount, they would start with the broth. The stronger the person gets, the more the meat he can take.

Porcupine, and also its broth is very strong, it is very good to drink, it is good to drink when a person is weak from hunger ... With otter, it is very good to eat, it helps the strength, when a person is weak from hunger, it helps to get their strength back.

Bear or caribou would have been ‘too strong’ to consume after days of little or no food. Even the broth of these animals would be taken with caution. A preferable alternative to such strong foods was fish or fish broth.

The fat of the different animals has the same degree of ‘potency’ as their meat. Bear fat, for example, is considered very strong food and was used extensively in the past as a medicament as well. Animal fat, either alone or mixed with the inner bark of the tamarack, was used as a poultice on wounds or burns. Bear fat was described to me as an exceptionally potent healing agent – here, the animal’s strength was reflected also in its curing abilities.

Beaver meat is anomalous in that it was

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