“Lifestyle medicine is the use of lifestyle interventions in the treatment and management of disease,” said Dr. Joy N. Javier during a lecture-forum entitled “Lifestyle Medicine and Healthy Living” on December 9, 2020.
Javier said that the practice of lifestyle medicine, having been founded in 2004, is new. It recognizes the importance of lifestyle behaviors as modifiable risk factors that could vastly change health outcomes. It advocates changing one’s way of life (lifestyle) as an initial intervention to prevent and treat chronic diseases.
She pointed out that lifestyle medicine believes that in treating patients, counseling, combined with medication, is more effective than using either alone.
“Even when patients are already in need of taking medications, lifestyle modification is still included in the treatment plan. Sustainable lifestyle change deals with the cause of the disease, thereby addressing the root, not just the symptoms,” she added.
Javier also shared the components of lifestyle medicine that included: 1. Whole food and plant-based diet; 2. Physical Activity; 3. Stress management and emotional l wellness; 4. Sleep; 5.Smoking cessation and avoiding risky substance abuse, and 6. Positive psychology and connectedness.
The face-to-face lecture-forum was organized by the UPV Healthy Lifestyle and Wellness Committee in partnership with the Teaching and Learning Resource Center (TLRC). It was also live-streamed via the FB page of TLRC. Dr. Javier is one of the medical doctors of the UPV Health Services Unit.
(This article, written by Ms. Lyncen Fernandez, was first published in the UPV Website on December 14, 2020)