Lakota man credits traditional diet for diabetes control

By Heidi Bell Gease, Journal Staff Writer

EAGLE BUTTE - Robert Chasing Hawk is in touch with his triglycerides.

"When my triglycerides goes up, my back of my head hurts," he explained, touching his head for emphasis.

Triglycerides are a form of fat found in food. They can provide energy for the body, but high levels of triglycerides can mean there is too much fat in the diet. They can also indicate a high risk for heart disease or poorly controlled diabetes.

Triglycerides aren't the only thing Chasing Hawk, 57, is aware of within his body. He knows a serving of raisins will raise his blood sugar by 80 points. He can estimate his cholesterol at any given time.

And he's convinced that eating the higher protein, lower carbohydrate diet of his ancestors has made him, as he likes to say, "the healthiest diabetic around." In fact, Chasing Hawk now relies on diet and exercise, not insulin, to control his diabetes.

He wasn't always so healthy. About 20 years ago, Chasing Hawk, who stands 5 feet 8 inches tall, weighed 224 pounds. He was Cheyenne River Sioux tribal chairman then, "and I was embarrassed about my big stomach."

So he began exercising, dropping to 176 pounds. Meanwhile, several family members were diagnosed with diabetes. "I was proud that I wasn't diabetic," he said.

But in 1992, Chasing Hawk's vision became blurry — a common sign of diabetes. Tests showed his cholesterol was 375, well over the American Heart Association's "high risk" point of 240 or above. He, too, was diabetic.

Chasing Hawk became a model patient. He exercised daily and followed food-pyramid guidelines that encourage a diet heavy in grains (i.e., carbohydrates) and low in meat/protein and fat. Yet in late 1997, his cholesterol was still 294.

"Two weeks later, I had a heart attack," Chasing Hawk said. Triple bypass surgery followed.

"I was mad. Because why me? I exercised," he said. "I followed the food pyramid. ... I even had my own keys to the fitness room."

Then, in December 1999, he and his wife, Ernestine, went out for a steak dinner. Ernestine always told him protein was good for him, he said, "but I didn't believe her."

Before dinner, Chasing Hawk's blood sugar was 160. Ninety minutes later, after eating a big steak, the reading had dropped to 31. "All that time," he said, "Ernestine was right."

Soon afterward, Chasing Hawk ran across a book on carbohydrate addiction. He stayed up late, reading the whole book straight through.

The next morning, his blood sugar was 140. After a high-protein breakfast of bacon and eggs, it had dropped to 105.

Chasing Hawk began experimenting and exploring how different foods affected his body. He checked his blood sugar 15 times a day. He studied nutrition. Then, he read about the Atkins Diet, which promotes high protein and low carbohydrate intake.

"I read five chapters, and it clicked in my mind that my ancestors were a high-protein, low-carbohydrate people," he said. Genetically, "Native Americans will have a harder time breaking up the sugar in carbohydrates."

Nutritionist Kibbe Conti agrees with that assessment. Indian people whose ancestors were hunter/gatherers have an atypical response to carbohydrates, she said, releasing more insulin after eating carbohydrates than someone whose ancestry is better adapted to that diet.

Chasing Hawk's move to a more traditional diet fits in well with Conti's Medicine Wheel nutrition guide (see related story on Page A1), which is based on the eating habits of pre-reservation-era tribes.

"Basically, how Bob and I see it, it's a historical diet," Conti said. "My whole thing is if you're predominantly Lakota, then you can't ignore your ancestor foodway. You just can't."

Chasing Hawk isn't eating just buffalo meat and wild turnips. He follows what he calls a "traditional diet in modern times."

He continually asks himself whether the food he's about to eat is something his ancestors might have eaten. Steak? Yes. Pasta? No.

"My great-great-grandfather didn't eat that bread, so why should I eat that bread?" he asked.

Chasing Hawk has also found that for him, eating twice as much protein as carbohydrates helps keep his blood sugar down. That doesn't mean no carbs, though.

"I still eat my apple pie," he said. "I still have my ice cream, on the sneak."

The trade-off is exercise. Chasing Hawk has monitored his blood sugar enough to know exactly how a two-mile jog or a brisk walk will affect his body, which he refers to as "a research center."

Now, he's ready to spread the word. He speaks at schools and workshops, encouraging people to take responsibility for their own health. He would like to see changes in commodity food programs and the USDA-approved food pyramid.

Chasing Hawk is also starting a diabetes organization called "Ehanni Lakol Wicounye Piye Yukini Inc.," or "Re-Awakening the Past Lakota Healthy Lifestyle." He hopes it eventually could offer inpatient treatment for diabetics.

Not everyone agrees with Chasing Hawk's theories. Indian Health Service administrators say his diet plan has not been scientifically researched and could prove dangerous.

The main concern is that excessive protein can be hard on the kidneys, which is an extra concern for diabetics whose kidneys are already stressed.

But Conti believes "excessive" is a relative term. "If you're a white European ... (a diet like his) might be of high protein to you," she said. But if you're a full-blooded Lakota, as Chasing Hawk is, your body might be accustomed to more protein.

Conti also notes that AIC blood tests show Chasing Hawk's diabetes is under control. "You can't lie on that test," she said, because it measures blood sugar for the past eight weeks. "I totally believe he's a success story."

Chasing Hawk says people should check with a doctor before trying his eating plan. And he says there's something else they need to do.

"If you really want to do it, get connected with that guy," he said, pointing skyward. "You gotta ask that guy to walk beside you."

Contact reporter Heidi Bell Gease at 394-8419 or at heidi.bell~rapidcityjournal.com

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