Diabetes is not Our Way Media Campaign

"Diabetes is not Our Way" Lakota Perspectives on Youth Diabetes Media Campaign Diabetes is not Our Way (Full Feature) 29 Minutes Lakota Perspectives on Youth Diabetes Direct Link

http://youtu.be/9oLcLCj0YMI 3-Part Diabetes Prevention Video PSA Series 1-minute Diabetes Prevention PSA 1 Direct Link http://youtu.be/Su4BnxxW73k Diabetes Prevention PSA 2 Direct Link http://youtu.be/ZGLtnOtO9QY Diabetes Prevention PSA 3 Direct Link http://youtu.be/Lm0F08KUmp8

3-Part Diabetes Prevention Radio (Audio) PSA Series 1-minute Diabetes PSA 1 Direct: http://soundcloud.com/cryp-cheyenne-river-youth/diabetes-psa-1-cryp Diabetes PSA 2 Direct: http://soundcloud.com/cryp-cheyenne-river-youth/dp-psa2 Diabetes PSA 3 Direct: http://soundcloud.com/cryp-cheyenne-river-youth/diabetes-psa-3-cryp

Indigenous Perspectives on Diabetes Series (Video) 2-3 Minutes 1. Marcella LeBeau - Indigenous Perspectives on Diabetes 1 of 10 Direct Link http://youtu.be/gagI21eCSXY 2. Ryman LeBeau - Indigenous Perspectives on Diabetes 2 of 10 Direct Link http://youtu.be/IjXYl2fAZqg 3. Dr. Biron Baker - Indigenous Perspectives on Diabetes 3 of 10 Direct Link http://youtu.be/ruy3WwRH-oQ 4. Julie Garreau - Indigenous Perspectives on Diabetes 4 of 10 Direct Link http://youtu.be/glZVbVrzGkM 5. John Finn - Indigenous Perspectives on Diabetes 5 of 10 Direct Link http://youtu.be/RzeCtfYgfLY 6. Hazel James - Indigenous Perspectives on Diabetes 6 of 10 Direct Link http://youtu.be/gqQKcXJ_1a4 7. Chase Iron Eyes - Indigenous Perspectives on Diabetes 7 of 10 Direct Link http://youtu.be/TjGYdl3-8Go 8. Wayne Ducheneaux - Indigenous Perspectives on Diabetes 8 of 10 Direct Link http://youtu.be/JTeRURu2hdE 9. Dr.Jim Garrett - Indigenous Perspectives on Diabetes 9 of 10 Direct Link http://youtu.be/DbCUk-JPdCA 10. Chief Arvol Looking Horse - Indigenous Perspectives on Diabetes 10 Direct Link http://youtu.be/TDyNwzd-ym8

CHEYENNE RIVER YOUTH PROJECT® UNVEILS MASSIVE YOUTH DIABETES PREVENTION CAMPAIGN EAGLE BUTTE, SD (October 29, 2012) — To raise awareness of the diabetes risk among native youth as well as to educate individuals, families and community members regarding the immediate actions they can take to prevent the onset of the disease, the Cheyenne River Youth Project® in Eagle Butte, South Dakota, has launched a large-scale campaign dedicated to youth diabetes prevention. The campaign also provides valuable information and tools for other native communities around the country as they face a similar battle.

The numbers are frightening. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Indian Health Service, American Indians and Alaska Natives are 2.2 times more likely to have diabetes than non-Hispanic whites.

Thirty percent of the indigenous population in this country has pre-diabetes, and of those who already have it, 95 percent have type 2 diabetes.

What’s even more frightening: There was a 68 percent increase in diabetes from 1994 to 2004 among native youth ages 15 to 19.

“The enrolled population of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe is approximately 15,000 people, living both on and off the reservation,” said diabetes educator John Finn, who works with CRYP. “Roughly 50 percent of the population is under the age of 18, and of that population, 33 to 40 percent have or are at risk for developing diabetes.”

That means children born on the 2.8-million-acre reservation in the year 2000, and every year after that, have a life expectancy that is shorter than the generations before. Many of them, according to Finn, already have circulatory profiles, indicators and conditions that mimic those of their chronically ill and elderly relatives, including elevated blood pressure, arterial plaque, enlarged heart, metabolic syndrome and diabetes. Some are as young as 8 to 10 years old.

“Diabetes is a true epidemic, one driven by a dangerous combination of factors,” Finn explained. “On Cheyenne River, and throughout Indian Country, many children are raised in an environment conditioned by past federal food program indiscretions and violations, inadequate health and economic support systems, food scarcity, low incomes, sedentary behaviors and historically poor eating practices. These children are at tremendous risk.”

It’s clear that native communities are facing a health disaster, and while genetic predispositions do exist, the majority of risk factors are socio-cultural and environmental. In other words, diabetes is preventable.

The signature component of the CRYP diabetes prevention campaign, a 30minute video titled “Diabetes is Not Our Way,” is now available for viewing on CRYP’s website at www.lakotayouth.org and on CRYP’s YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/user/CheyenneRiverYP. Also available on the nearly 25-year-old, not-for-profit youth project’s YouTube Channel: a 10-part, short-video series called “Indigenous Perspectives,” in which prominent community members share their views on the diabetes epidemic and what can be done to address it. In addition, CRYP has prepared three public service announcements for television and online use, with three audio PSAs still to come. The Diabetes Action Research and Education Foundation and the Lowenstein Foundation provided funding for the various campaign elements, which were filmed and produced by the Seventh Generation Fund for Indian Development www.7genfund.org.

“Our next step is to build a video library on our website at lakotayouth.org, so that all the campaign elements will be available there, as well,” said Julie Garreau, CRYP’s executive director. “We want to share these videos with as many people as we can, and we want our message to reach beyond Lakota communities.

Indigenous people nationwide, and worldwide, are facing the same challenges.

We need to share information, learn from each other and stand up together to fight this latest threat to our long-term health and well-being.

“Awareness and education are the keys to success,” she continued. “Our kids look to us, the adults, for direction on how to nourish their bodies, how to stay strong and how to be healthy. So our entire community needs to encourage them to get outside, to exercise, to work in a garden and to eat fresh, whole, unprocessed foods — and we need to set a positive example for them.”

Garreau said she hopes the campaign’s message will resonate with viewers and inspire them to take action.

“Diabetes is not unique to the Lakota people,” she noted. “We’re all suffering. We all need access to solid information about nutrition and exercise.

And we all can look to our own cultures for the resources we need to effect change. Diabetes is not our way. We need to reclaim the health of our communities and the security of our futures as native people… and the time to act is now.”

To learn more about the Cheyenne River Youth Project and its programs, and for information about making donations and volunteering, call (605) 964-8200 or visit www.lakotayouth.org. And, to stay up to date on the latest CRYP news and events, follow the youth project on Facebook and LinkedIn.