What is Lifestyle Medicine - isn't it all just obvious?

Sometimes, when I talk to patients about Lifestyle Medicine (LM), they say "sure, yes that's obvious, of course I need to sleep/eat/move well/stop smoking". And it is obvious, but why are we not all doing it?

The answers are complex and that's why we often need some help along the way to work out fact from fiction. And then we sometimes need help translating advice into practical day to day actions that fit in our own busy lives.

Lifestyle Medicine provides the antidote to TikTok Doc with 30 second sales pitches for miracle cures. LM sets out the evidence of what really works and how effective it is for different parts of the population. A good Lifestyle Medicine Doctor can then work with groups or individuals to find ways that this scientific evidence can be translated into real world action for you.

Once you know what might work for you it is sometimes difficult to find the time/headspace to get started. Change often isn't easy, it pushes us outside our comfort zone. Coaching and change management techniques can help you to work out what you want, why and what you are willing to do differently to bring about progress in your health and wellbeing. If this was easy, we would all just be doing the right thing all the time! Sometimes we need an objective and supportive ally to help and encourage us on our journey, keeping us in touch with our motivation and the new identity we are aiming for.