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DR. BRAD WILLCOX RELEASES NEW BOOK ON HEALTHY WEIGHT LOSS

Honolulu, Hawaii (April 19, 2004) -- Dr. Bradley Willcox, a nationally recognized expert on healthy aging, formerly of Harvard Medical School and currently Investigator at Pacific Health Research Institute, Clinical Assistant Professor, University of Hawaii, Co-Principal Investigator of the Okinawa Centenarian Study and author of the New York Times bestseller “The Okinawa Program: Learn the Secrets to Healthy Longevity”, has just published a new prescriptive book on his latest discoveries about the Okinawa Diet called the Okinawa Diet Plan: Get Leaner, Live Longer and Never Be Hungry.

PHRI has made substantial national and international contributions to understanding the chronic diseases of aging. Dr. David Curb, CEO/President/Medical Director of PHRI, Director of Geriatric and Clinical Epidemiology Research at University of Hawaii and the Principal Investigator for the Kuakini Honolulu Heart Program says “We are continuing to define what the dietary and genetic components are that have kept the older Okinawan population among the leanest and long-lived peoples anywhere. Dr. Willcox’s work provides unique and valuable comparative data between Okinawans and other Japanese-Americans in Hawaii and Japan. This will help define medical advances that help us all combat obesity and minimize the risk of frailty as we age and ultimately increase quality of life and decrease health care costs”.

Dr. Willcox and PHRI recently received a federal grant from the National Institute on Aging to study the “Genetics of Exceptional Survival in Okinawan-Japanese Centenarians”. Okinawans are the longest-lived of the Japanese, currently the world’s longest-lived country, and appear to suffer from less obesity and disability as they age. Dr. Willcox will continue to explore lifestyle factors such as nutrition and exercise as contributors to healthy weight, particularly in Okinawans and Okinawa-Americans.