Jorge Hernandez of San Leandro, California, had an epiphany when in late 2007, his grandfather died of heart failure. He saw five of his uncles at the funeral, most of whom were suffering from diabetes or a heart condition. At 5'10" and 270 pounds, Jorge recognized that he shared their genetic predisposition. "That hit me hard," says Jorge. "I didn't want my father to be at my funeral."
Jorge, then 27, got a literal wake-up call when vibrations running through his chest awakened him one morning. David Townsend, MD, at Kaiser Permanente Union City Medical Center looked at Jorge, shook his head and said, "You need to lose weight."
Jorge began limiting his sugar intake, curbing his carbohydrates, and shopping at farmers markets where he bought vegetables for the first time. He started taking lunch-time walks and lifting weights. Jorge dropped 100 pounds in a year. When he got a follow-up check at Kaiser Permanente, he learned his cholesterol was "nearly perfect" and his blood pressure had dropped dramatically. It was the first time he could truly consider himself to be healthy. "I was proud," says Jorge. "It felt good."