Returning to Traditional Basics

By Sam Sandoval and Anita Dupuis

Of all the diets and fads that promise rapid and healthy weight loss, none have successfully proven to be the once-and-for-all panacea for "spare tire" woes. For Native People, the battle with the bulge is a desperate race to avoid health problems like diabetes and heart disease as, historically, Native American genetics weren't made to properly digest and metabolize non-native cuisine, i.e. sugar, flour and trans-fat.

Along comes the Traditional Lifestyle Challenge spearheaded by Anita Dupuis through the Salish Kootenai College Community Health and Development Department (CHD), under a grant from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. SKC-CHD and the tribal community are partnered with the University of Arizona Department of Family and Community Medicine for this community-based participatory research project.

The Traditional Living Challenge is a health promotion intervention designed to motivate and inspire native people to adopt and maintain a healthy diet, physical activity and responsible tobacco-use behaviors based on traditional practices of our ancestors. Not so long ago, bitterroot, camas, huckleberries, dried meat and so on were staples of the ancestors; even Lewis and Clark wrote about their meeting with the Salish and the 'questionable' meal they were given. A return to the Native foods, Dupuis hopes, will help Native people stave off health problems associated with the fast food, PBJ, get-it-quick microwave satiety of the new millennium.

The TLC evolved from Dupuis' master's thesis interviews with tribal community members on the Flathead Indian Reservation. Participants interviewed stressed the importance of traditional culture and values being at the center of health promotion for the Selish, Ksanka and Qlispe people.

During her research Anita came to the conclusion that you could "pick a disease, any disease, and if it has included in its cause individual health behaviors such as diet, exercise, drinking and smoking habits, I would start with something like the TLC".

She feels "in order to be successful, an intervention in native communities must speak to who we are, must be based in and founded upon the traditional wisdom of our ancestors, and it must be learned by experience...(and then) doing it." This is what the TLC is attempting to do.

Participants of the 9-day experience of TLC ate traditional foods; mainstream foods of similar nutritional value were used when traditional foods fell short in supply. So-called "traditional" foods like frybread and Bannick bread were banned, as well as coffee, tea, sodas, cigarettes, commodity foods, pizza, pasta, alcohol and especially white bread. Traditional smoke plants assisted some in curbing nicotine cravings; most of the regular smokers seemed to adjust with no problems.

In order to maximize the benefits of the healthier traditional diet, participants engaged in many physical activities. Activities included wood gathering, berry and root gathering (much done in advance), hide tanning, hauling water, hunting, fishing and playing traditional games. Tim Ryan of Ancestral Skills Technologies was on site to share knowledge of traditional tool making and use.

A few participants, unable to make the 9-day camping commitment, were provided "care packages" of dry meat and berries, and lists of food they could purchase commercially to honor the principles the campers were following as closely as possible.

Measurements taken before the challenge included glucose and cholesterol levels, body weight and waist-to-hip ratio. Many who attended lost weight during the experience, and yet were able to eat as much as they wanted of the foods available.

During the thesis interviews, several respondents felt that the TLC should become our drug and alcohol prevention/intervention program. Anita, Site Principle Investigator for the TLC study said, "it is possible, if this takes hold, future funding could be accessed to explore this potential as well." The TLC is an attempt to see if this form of intervention is possible to do in native communities and whether it merits more study.

The study also includes a sampling of the tribal community. This sample will be randomly selected for screening for heart disease risk factors. This will enable the study to monitor changes throughout the tribal population. This will take place in January and February; Dupuis encourages anyone who receives a mailing to participate.

Cheryl Ritenbaugh, MD, PhD and Principle Investigator for the study from University of Arizona, expressed her appreciation for the camp this way: "You've gotten off the block faster than most grants ever do; In fact, I think you've broken a record!"

Two more camps will be held next summer, along with a more aggressive backcountry camp targeting the youth, which will include mountain wilderness-living on foot. Adults and youth who would like to participate in this camp should contact the Community Health and Development Department at 275-2862.