ETHAN issues weight loss challenge; holds classes for healthy eating habits

"Keep kicking the metabolic thermostat up," says nutritionist Jeanine Johnson, who taught a recent weightloss class for ETHAN, the East Texas Health Access Network.

One thing she emphasized is, don't skip meals. Skipping meals, especially breakfast, puts the body into starvation mode and slows metabolism, whereas several small balanced meals a day can promote calorie-burning.

ETHAN founder Carlene Womack issued a 90-day weight loss challenge in March and has lost more than five pounds the first month. About 20 people attended the first monthly meeting, but by the second meeting last Friday, numbers had doubled.

It was obvious from the questions that the many in the audience were struggling to understand how food affects their blood sugar levels. Although the class is not specifically geared to diabetics, reducing weight through better nutrition is one of the keys to managing the disease.

Considering that almost 10 percent of American adults have adult-onset diabetes and 1.5 million new cases are diagnosed each year, local health agencies are teaming up to help people understand more about the disease.

In May, ETHAN teams up with Cindy VanDevender, the family and consumer science agent for the AgriLife Extension Service, for a series of five free classes on diabetes management.

Those classes will be specifically designed for people with limited literacy skills and/or limited income, but all of the classes are open to the public and will include lunch that is an example of a healthy meal.

For information on health and nutrition classes, call ETHAN at 384-2099 or VanDevender at 384-3721.