ART DICK

Local Councilman and Hereditary Chief, Namgis First Nation. Art has always struggled with weight, which at times in his life has climbed as high as three hundred pounds. He feels this may have been genetic as he had great aunts who were very obese. Art has been a diabetic for over 10 years, and has had to taken ever increasing amounts of insulin.

His greatest desire in adopting Dr. Jay Wortman's approach to a no carb no sugar diet, is that he and his daughters, who also battle weight problems, can function together as a healthy, active family. He was one of the first people to sign up for Wortmans' study with the hope that it would improve his diabetes.

JILL COOK

School principal in Alert Bay, BC. Jill has battled weight problems all her life. And the burden of that has been both physical and emotional. "It's been the root and fear of a lot of things that I haven't done in life..." She joined the Wortman study with the hope that the diet would not only help her to feel better, but will also bring her to a long-desired goal; to be able to shop in stores that sell regular size clothing.

For her, weight loss also means a big gain in self-esteem. The diet has become a family effort. Jill's sister, Michelle has also joined to help keep a determined Jill on track.

ART SHAUGNESSY

RCMP Officer, Port Hardy, BC It was a heart attack that brought Art to re-assess his diet. Initially, Art was confused by an approach to eating that seems to fly in the face of everything he's been warned to avoid, for example greasy foods, like bacon and eggs. "Why is it all of a sudden good for me when it wasn't good for me just recently."

But he overcame his skepticism, joined the no carb band wagon, traded hash browns for cauliflower and lost 20 pounds in just the fist two months of Jay Wortman's approach. And ART has become much more conscientious about what he buys at the grocery story. "Now you go in there and you're there for an hour and a half because you're reading labels. I'm doing this for my two kids who also have high blood pressure."

GREG WADHAMS

One of the few commercial fisherman left in Alert Bay due to collapse of local fishing industry. Greg had a health scare earlier this year when he contracted Type 2 diabetes. He's determined to do anything to get rid of diabetes.

A good part of his enthusiasm for Jay Wortman's approach is that it embraces a return to the traditional, natural foods of his ancestors. "To me it's important that we have that tomorrow so that our kids enjoy the lives we had and sustain the beauty of our territory here."

Among the 60 or 70 participants who stuck with the diet, a total of 550 kilograms (about 1200 pounds) was lost.