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[Announcer] This podcast is presented by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC – safer, healthier people.

[Corliss McKeever] If you sit in a beauty shop long enough, you can get the pulse of what's going on in the community. People are coming in and sharing information on a regular basis.

[Rosie] Well I promised my doctor that I was going to try and lose some weight so I wouldn't have to have surgery on this knee.

[Corliss McKeever] I started thinking, what if we were passing pertinent information through the beauty shop, using this as a vehicle to save lives?

[Beauty Shop Sound] I'm working on losing weight, but I know that if I can continue to exercise and watch what I eat that— my main motive right now is to feel good.

[Capt. Williams] Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. On average, African Americans are twice as likely to die from cardiovascular disease than are whites. The idea of REACH is to learn specific community-driven strategies that are effective in reducing and eliminating health disparities.

[Corliss McKeever] So we ran an ad in the paper. It simply said, "If you had a million dollars, what would you do to reduce cardiovascular disease among blacks in Oregon?" And the ideas poured out the woodwork.

[Rosie] I love water aerobics. I do, there's two.

[Marcia] Come to my shallow class. I have a lot of people who don't swim in my class. I could sign you up right now. You know that's part of the free exercise program.

[Woman] Well, maybe I could do that!

[Corliss McKeever] Marcia Jordan, who’s a hair stylist, had wanted to be a physical activity instructor for years, but couldn't afford the training. And we paid for her to become a certified water aerobics instructor.

[Marcia Jordan] Start jogging in place! Right here. Punch it out. Y'all can get closer to me; I'm not going to hurt you! I have people that come in on walkers, canes, and when they get in the water they are totally liberated.

[Corliss McKeever] We're not out making super athletes out of these people, nor are we athletes ourselves. But we're making small, incremental changes that are making a major impact.

[Captain Williams] It's very important, right out of the womb, to start healthy life style. CDC has had aggressive programs to help youth learn the things they need to know about prevention.

[Brianna] Heart attack, high blood pressure, high cholesterol... these are silent killers. Since I've been in this program I've been sharing this information with my family, especially my mom; she's been going to kickboxing classes, and our whole diet has been changing. My mom has started cooking dinner with more vegetables.

[Corliss McKeever] Because everyone’s not going to become vegan and eat tofu. They need to learn how to cook the foods that they are culturally connected to in a healthy way.

[Brianna's Mom] I've lost quite a bit of weight, and I'm trying to eat a lot better than I've been doing before, because of her helping me out with what she's learned.

[Corliss McKeever] They know these people. So when they say something to them they believe them.

[Rosie] It's good to see people just more radiant because they're feeling good. And it's not what other people are thinking about them, it's what they're thinking about themselves.

[Captain Williams] Apart from the camaraderie and the fun that a lot of the participants in the interventions are having - they're working and people's lives are being improved.

[Brianna] I'm seeing my mom lose a lot of weight, and she feels a lot better. I see her smiling more and that feels good to me because, you know, I feel like I've put some help in and that things have changed. Yeah.

[Announcer] For the most accurate health information, visit www.cdc.gov or call 1-800-CDC-INFO, 24/7.