Early in my professional career, I was humbled and honored by the invitation to co-research a study with Dr. Claire Hughes, among other esteemed Native Hawaiian health practitioners.

A number of studies and programs had repeatedly demonstrated the success of a traditional Hawaiian diet in lowering body weight, cholesterol, triglycerides, glucose and/or blood pressure, among Native Hawaiian adults.

With this known, researchers wanted to go a step further to determine whether a traditional Hawaiian diet boosted athletic abilities as well.

This was a revolutionary point to explore for two reasons. First, general mainstream advice to athletes advises a diet that has a low to moderate amount of carbohydrates. Second, the composition of a traditional Hawaiian diet was far from being low or even moderate in carbohydrates. In fact, carbohydrates made up approximately 78% of Hawaiʻi’s pre-Western diet. Examples include taro and sweet potato and their leaves, yams, breadfruit, and bananas.

In our study – the Uliʻeo Koa Program: Warrior Preparedness Program – we worked with Native Hawaiian male and female members of a lua group. The program participants engaged in two hours of daily exercise; one hour of light exercise and one of vigorous intensity. All meals provided to the athletes followed a traditional Hawaiian diet pattern. At the end of this program, despite eating a high carbohydrate diet, members experienced more muscular strength, endurance, and flexibility than before.

An interesting thing to keep in mind is that red meat and eggs were not provided in this program, only limited amounts of fish and chicken. The program findings were not entirely surprising.

Historian Samuel Kamakau described the diet of warriors during the reign of Kamehameha I. To prepare his warriors for martial art instruction and training, Kamehameha provided them with a generous supply of starchy vegetables and fish. The diet was the same regardless of whether they were chiefs or commoners. Kamehameha encouraged them to provide for themselves by cultivating their land and fishing. While providing instruction, he set an example by working alongside them. During battle, vegetables and fruit were the primary foods of the warriors, as they were the most readily available and convenient.

The fact that Native Hawaiians were physically impressive gives further proof of the nutritional adequacy of this plant-based diet. Historical writings describe Hawaiians as “tall, shapely, and muscular.” The average height of the men was thought to be five feet ten inches, with some as tall as six feet seven inches. If Hawaiians were a nutritionally malnourished people, historians would not have reported such favorable characteristics.

So what is the best diet for athletes? Look no further than our own history. As was said about Kamehameha, “Furnishing food and things for the wellbeing of his people was the first stepping stone to victory, as who can be a strong man in a battle if he lacks the food to strengthen his body?”

 Overweight is a national health crisis. Late in 2017, the National Center for Health Statistics reported that about 18.5 percent of U.S. children and 36 percent of U.S. adults were obese. The Center characterized obesity as an epidemic crisis. Obesity is the highest part of the scale for measuring Body Mass Index (BMI >30). A BMI between 25 and 29.9 is considered overweight and normal weights fall between 18.5 to 24.9. In seeking remedies to obesity, the family is viewed as the critical player. Potential family solutions cited were: avoiding fast foods, eating healthy meals and engaging in physical activities as a family. 

In 2013, Hawai‘i’s Health Department reported about 24 percent (23.8%), of Hawai‘i’s adults were obese. About 41 percent (40.8%) of Native Hawaiian adults were obese and, Hawai‘i’s Chinese population had the lowest overall rate of obesity, at less-than 7 percent. The U.S. food supply, the high-availability of poor food choices, as well as changes in food habits are all problems that allow for dietary over-consumption and empty-calories. Heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes mellitus and atherosclerosis are health conditions directly related to poor food choices and food excesses.

There is great concern for Native Hawaiians who face serious health risks associated with overweight. The concern is that more Native Hawaiians die from these health conditions…every year. Overweight is the first step toward the greater health harms listed above. And, if alcohol consumption is involved, the list of risks grows longer. Excessive alcohol intake can cause overweight and, alcohol is closely linked to cirrhosis of the liver, several cancers, suicides and accidents. Importantly, overweight and obesity are signals to us that, change is needed, to avoid greater internal harm.

Seeking solutions leads, quickly, to a focus on daily exercise, food choices and eating practices as primary concerns for overweight individuals. As Hawaiians, we can look to our kūpuna as sources of wisdom…and solutions. Granted, our kūpuna had different problems…than ours in 2019. However, they dealt with a lot, as well. Mary Kawena Pukui, tells us, our ancestors were thoughtfully concerned, daily, with maintaining sound bodies. Their lives depended on staying uninjured, mobile, strong and healthy. They focused on keeping healthy strong bodies throughout life. Clear and vivid descriptions of our ancestors, left by the first foreign visitors to Hawai‘i, describe our kūpuna as tall, strong, muscular, with upright postures and the ability for a lot of hard work. Adopting…or, at least, serious considering our kūpuna’s standards today, can help us deal with overweight and other health challenges.

U.S. health experts point to American food choices as the cause of many chronic illnesses, and they note the increased cost of caring for individuals with food-related illnesses in the U.S., every year. Health experts agree that making appropriate lifestyle choices can have powerful impacts on regaining health. Cancer of the lungs and colon (intestinal tract) cause the greatest health damage to Hawaiians, today. Thus, stopping cigarette-smoking, adding daily exercise and eating green and orange-colored vegetables are keys to restoring health, and staying illness-free. Our ancestral diet was almost 80 percent vegetables, including, taro, lū‘au, palula, poi, sweet potato, ‘ulu, greens and limu. Today, we eat too much meat…and far too much processed meats (Spam, hotdogs, sausages, etc.), totaling, two times the protein that our ancestors ate, and far less food from the garden and the sea. Fish is far superior to canned meats, sausage, excesses of beef, pork or egg protein. Eating more like our ancestors will bring positive change to your health.

We need to heed the wisdom of our kūpuna and return to sources of Hawaiian health.