Improved nutrition, increased exercise, stress reduction, and better sleep are likely to come to mind when considering strategies to improve your health. But when was the last instance you had a conversation with your physician about these concerns? Exercise is an important factor in building a healthy lifestyle. You can find a variety of quality gym equipment that will help you build a healthy lifestyle at MAGMA Fitness. You may have heard the term “prescribing lifestyle medicine” in recent years. Many people confuse lifestyle medicine with complementary or alternative medicine. Others believe it is just another health fad gaining a lot of attention, but there is no data to back up the claims. These claims do not correctly describe this new medical specialization. Here is detailed information on lifestyle medicine.
Lifestyle medicine
The American College of Lifestyle Medicine explains that Lifestyle Medicine entails using evidence-based lifestyle therapeutic approaches. Such as a predominantly plant-based diet, whole food, regular physical activity, adequate sleep, avoidance of risky substance use, stress management, and other non-drug modalities to treat. And, in many cases, reverse lifestyle-related chronic diseases. Healthcare providers, on the other hand, rarely emphasize behavior modifications. Time, knowledge, compensation, resources, and patient interest are all cited as barriers.
Significance of lifestyle medicine
- The World Health Organization estimates that lifestyle decisions will cause two-thirds of all diseases by 2020.
- At least 80% of healthcare spending is spent on treating illnesses that are caused by lifestyle choices.
- The healthcare system is transitioning from an unsustainable fee-for-service approach to a value-and-outcomes-based model.
Things to know about lifestyle medicine
You have probably heard people talk about lifestyle medicine, but if you are unsure what that means, here is the explanation. Lifestyle medicine examines how the foods we eat, our physical activity, stress levels, and current medical issues affect our overall health.
A lifestyle medicine approach can effectively treat the majority of prevalent chronic conditions
High cholesterol, hypertension, coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, general weariness, obesity, osteoporosis, and arthritis, among other conditions, are examples. Lifestyle medicine focuses on the root causes and the underlying condition rather than just treating the symptoms. The term genes load the gun, but bad lifestyle choices pull the trigger is one we like to use. Hence, genes may frequently be turned on or off based on our lifestyle choices when it comes to most chronic diseases. So, just because your parent has heart disease does not imply you are doomed to follow in their footsteps.
In general, lifestyle medicine is substantially less expensive than traditional healthcare
But why, you might wonder? Lifestyle medicine practices can not only arrest or reverse chronic illnesses, but they can also prevent health problems from developing in the future. As a result, fewer doctor visits, medical procedures, and prescription prescriptions are used less frequently.
There is a lot more in lifestyle medicine
While food and exercise are frequently seen as the cornerstones of the lifestyle medicine approach, there is much more to it. It also includes stress relief, social connection, and a sense of purpose. The best strategy for nurturing an ideal state of wellness is to address the combination of these variables.
Gaining the information and life skills
Individuals who use lifestyle medicine gain the information and life skills they need to create lasting behavioral adjustments. Living with chronic pain or sickness symptoms can be stressful, but once you understand the underlying causes of common problems, you will feel more empowered to make the best decisions for your health.
Wrapping it up
When you see the lifestyle medicine doctor, they will assess your current health and discuss chronic diseases and health problems with you. Patients in the future will require a lifestyle medicine prescription from a doctor and a pad containing all of their medications. Thus, you will walk away with a customized strategy to help you make adjustments and achieve your health objectives.