An Oglala Lakota warrior is silhouetted against the late afternoon sky during a three-day PowWow...

An Oglala Lakota warrior is silhouetted against the late afternoon sky during a three-day PowWow on the Pine Ridge Indian Resveration in South Dakota. A ongoing report by the Strong Heart Study, funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, says that more than 50 percent of Native Americans over the age of 45 are diabetic. Researchers believe there is a very big genetic component, and it was an advantage many years ago. In the days of feast or famine Native Americans could consume large quantities of food in one sitting and their efficient bodies stored it for the lean times. Today the sedentary reservation lifestyle combined with a consistent supply of food that's high in sugar has turned what was once a positive into a deadly negative. Photo taken June 24, 2001.