It is well known that about two-thirds of the U.S. population is
either overweight or obese. The U.S. Surgeon General has stated
that approximately 75% of Western diseases, such as heart
disease, stroke, hypertension, diabetes, gout, arthritis, excess
weight gain, hypertension, diabetes, some cancers, impotence,
biventricular disease, constipation, heartburn, and gallbladder
disease, are “lifestyle-related.” They are directly correlated
with our high fat diet, inadequate amounts of exercise, smoking,
high intake of caffeine, and high amounts of stress coupled with
insufficient support.
Hoping to address this alarming situation, more than 20 years
ago, cardiovascular epidemiologist Hans A. Diehl, DrHSc, MPH,
created the Coronary Health Improvement Project (CHIP). Since
then, this 40-hour community-based lifestyle intervention
program has helped more than 40,000 people rediscover their
health by preventing, arresting and reversing their diseases.
It has been conducted in more than 150 North American cities
as well as in Bangalore, India, Australia and Switzerland.
Depending upon the needs of the group, the meetings are held
either “live” with Dr. Diehl delivering the program personally
(usually meeting four times per week for four weeks) or as a
“video-based” program with certified CHIP facilitators (normally
two times per week for eight weeks). In addition, Dr. Diehl is
a best-selling author – To Your Health, Dynamic Living, and
Health Power (co-authored with Aileen Ludington, M.D.) -- as
well as the executive editor of a 24-page quarterly Lifeline
Health Letter; he has produced scores of health videos. CHIP
empowers people through its scientifically-documented,
educational and inspirational program that addresses common
western diseases -- those that used to be seen primarily later
in life. Today, these diseases increasingly appear at far
younger ages. CHIP may make all the difference in one’s life
-- even the difference between life and death.
In 1999, CHIP launched a “community health transformation
template” in Rockford, Illinois, a city with a population of
130,000. The intention was to transform Rockford into the
healthiest city in American, thereby enabling it to serve
as a model and template for cultural transformation on a
community-wide level. Recently, CHIP was recognized as just
such a model by HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson and was “approved”
under the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as a “STEPS to a
HealthierUS” applicant. In addition to “live” CHIP, a series of
CHIP videos are offered through schools, churches, corporations,
and hospitals. In Rockford, CHIP is sponsored by the Swedish
American Health System’s Center for Complementary Medicine.
Who is the typical CHIP participant? Generally, CHIP participants
are over the age of 40. Most are between the ages of 50 and 59.
There are twice as many women as men, and almost 90% are married.
Clinical research, published in peer review journals, has found
that they have the following lifestyle diseases:
* 10% report having heart disease
* 27% have elevated blood sugar
* 42% are overweight
* 49% show evidence of hypertension
* 60% are obese
* 89% are cholesterol above 160mg%
Over the course of the program, strict adherents are likely
to experience significant clinical improvements such as the
following:
* Serum cholesterol reduction average 15 – 20%
* Average weight loss of six pounds
* In about half of the participants with type 11 diabetes, a
dramatic reduction in need for insulin and hypoglycemic
agents
* Lowering of high blood pressure levels
* Diminishing of angina
* Reduced levels of depression and increase in self-esteem
Class & Video Lecture Schedule
Week 1
Modern Medicine: Miracles, Medicines, & Mirages
The limitations of high-tech medical approaches in dealing
with lifestyle related diseases
Portrait of a Killer: Onslaught from Within
Atherosclerosis, the culprit in many lifestyle diseases
Stalking the Killer
Reviewing the risk factors for coronary heart disease
Eat More and Weigh Less
Basic guidelines for healthy, sustained weight loss
Week 2
Going Up in Smoke
Smoking – the most controllable risk factor for coronary
heart disease
The Magic of Fiber
The role of fiber in preventing and reversing lifestyle
diseases
Reversing Hypertension
Changing the major risk factors for high blood pressure
Disarming Diabetes
Lifestyle factors that can arrest or reverse diabetes
Effective Cholesterol Control
Dietary factors that prominently affect blood levels of
cholesterol
Fats in the Fire
The role of excessive fat intake in lifestyle diseases
Week 3
Fit at Any Age
Benefits of regular exercise in preventing and arresting
disease
Boning Up on Osteoporosis
Cause and prevention of this so-called “disease of aging”
Lifestyle and Health
Clinical studies that demonstrate how lifestyle choices are
related to health
The Optimal Diet
Positive dietary guidelines for the prevention and reversal
of Western diseases
Week 4
Diet and Cancer
Dietary factors in the development and prevention of common
cancers
Atherosclerosis of the Mind
The importance of adaptability in achieving and maintaining
optimal health
The Gift of Forgiveness
How a spirit of forgiveness enhances emotional and overall
health
Building Self-Worth
The development, preservation and role of self worth in a
healthy person
Sidebar
Connie Thebarge’s Story
At the age of 59, Connie Thebarge, a patient at the Ottawa Heart
Institute in British Columbia, Canada, was told that her doctors
could no longer help her. After all, in addition to suffering
from hypertension, she had diabetes and painful diabetic
neuropathy. She had two heart attacks followed by a triple
coronary bypass surgery and an unsuccessful angioplasty. Every
day, she had to take 27 pills. Not surprisingly, she was also
depressed.
Yet, today, more than a decade later, Thebarge walks three miles
a day, swims twice a week, dances, and travels to Florida and
Europe. No longer depressed, she also requires far fewer pills.
How was this accomplished? Thebarge participated in CHIP and
transformed her life.
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