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Bringing the program to your location .

Every group has different needs. We personalize our programs to fit your unique requirements and find the location and facilitators that are needed. For a personal consultation on how to bring AAHF's lifestyle change program to your location, please contact us.

The Chronic Diseases that kill us are largely preventable. The risks associated with heart disease, stroke, various forms of cancer, and diabetes can be greatly reduced with lifestyle changes. The results from the recently completed three year long Diabetes Prevention Program reinforce the importance of lifestyle change as a primary preventive intervention.

In this study, a comparison was made between two approaches, each attempting to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes (maturity onset and closely related to obesity) in individuals at high risk for the disease. One group received standard drug therapy and the second group participated in a lifestyle intervention program that focused on sensible dietary changes and moderate physical activity. A third group served as the control and received no intervention.

At the end of the three years, the incidence of diabetes was reduced 58% in the group making the lifestyle changes compared to only 31% in the group that utilized medications when compared to the control group. This type of information is encouraging and proves that healthful lifestyle preventative measures are effective in curbing the incidence of type 2 diabetes which is becoming all too common as our society gets fatter and fatter.

And, the cost of administering the lifestyle prevention program was only a fraction of the cost of paying for medications. As information like this becomes more available, health insurance companies and employers will find the combination of effectiveness and lower cost hard to beat.  The preventative health program required only a 30-minute brisk walk five days a week and a modest change in diet that focused on a slight reduction in calories and reducing dietary fat. This approach is within the reach of most people if they are given the knowledge and then the support to get them started.

A review of another study tells us that nearly two of every three adults in the U.S. are either overweight or obese, as defined by a BMI of more than 25 kg/m2 and 30 kg/m2, respectively. Obesity-related diseases claim up to 300,000 lives in the U.S. annually. However, weight loss of 5% to 10% of body weight has been demonstrated to reduce the risk of developing such diseases. Recent studies have also shown that people really can commit to diet and lifestyle changes for the long haul, and when they do, the benefit shows up in their blood pressure.

In a recent study of 810 adults with elevated blood pressure, investigators found that those who were given a true lifestyle revamp (extended counseling and education) were generally able to stick with the plan for the 18 months they were followed. What is more, their risk of having full-blown high blood pressure was about one-fifth lower than that of study participants who received only advice on lifestyle changes. The findings, which were published in the Annals of Internal Medicine in April 2006, show that people can change their behavior for the long term with the right support.

In this study, lifestyle modifications were slightly different depending on which group study volunteers were in. One group was given goals of exercising for at least 3 hours per week, cutting sodium and alcohol intake, and, if overweight, shedding 15 pounds. A second group had all of those goals, plus instructions to follow the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute's DASH diet, which calls for boosting fruit, vegetable and low-fat dairy intake, while cutting down on saturated fat.

Both groups attended regular counseling sessions or classes to help them work these lifestyle changes into their daily routine. A third group received only advice on diet, exercise and weight loss.

After 18 months, men and women in both groups that received more consideration than just advice were eating less fat and sodium and lost weight. Twenty five percent met the goal of losing 15 pounds. Those in the more intensive DASH diet group also increased their fruit, vegetable and low-fat dairy intake.

These changes, the researchers found, were reflected in their blood pressure. At the outset, all of the study volunteers were either on the verge of high blood pressure or in the earliest stage of the condition, and nearly all were overweight. After 18 months, rates of full-blown high blood pressure were lower in all three groups, but lowest in the DASH group -- where it fell from 38% to 22%. In the other counseling group, the hypertension rate slid from 36% to 24%.

In real life few people have the support of group and individual counseling as the volunteers in this study did. Even in the advice-only group participants had two 30-minute discussions with a health educator, which is more support than the average American battling excess pounds and elevated blood pressure has easy access to, even from their physician. Most physicians tell patients that lifestyle changes are necessary, but often due to schedule limitations and a lack of resources, that is the most that is accomplished. Advice is given, but there is no time for further counseling or follow-up.

Understanding the importance of increased knowledge and support in addition to advice for patients, AAHF identified the need for a program that would provide the counseling, education, and motivation necessary to help people succeed in lifestyle change. Working in conjunction with a group of 850 physicians in central New Jersey the lifestyle change course Move More, Eat Better—YOU Matter!™  was developed.