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Zunis Run for Health
Program Helps Tribe Ward Off Diabetes
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Zuni runners along the road in western New Mexico.
Photo: Kate Davidson
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Aug. 24, 2002 -- This year, the Zuni tribe of western New Mexico is celebrating the 20th anniversary of a model fitness program designed to combat diabetes by building on tribal traditions of running and physical activity.
Studies have proven that lifestyle modification -- a healthy diet and moderate exercise -- is the most effective way to prevent or delay the onset of the disease. This year for the first time, there was no fee to participate in the Zuni Fitness Series, and enrollment has soared.
As Kate Davidson reports for All Things Considered, diabetes affects Native Americans in disproportionate numbers. On average, American Indians and Alaska Natives are about three times more likely to develop diabetes than non-Hispanic whites. Medical professionals say that a variety of factors could account for this -- lifestyle habits, changes in diet, and genetics.
Zunis have been running for centuries, whether to reach distant farm fields or to disseminate battle plans to far-flung villages.
Now they gather from May to September for relay races, fun walks, and runs to a nearby mountain that the tribe holds sacred.
In the past, not all families could afford the $10 registration fee, says Ruby Wolf, director of a community group that sponsored this year's participants. "Coming from a poor tribe, we don't often find children walking around with $10 in their pocket," she says. "But when they learned that the program was sponsoring them, they showed up in the hundreds."
Other Resources
 Healthy Tribes is on online effort to promite health among American Indians and Alaska Natives.
The Indian Health Service program to combat diabetes.
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