Six Ways to Take Control of Your Health
Lifestyle medicine is a medical specialty that uses therapeutic lifestyle interventions as a primary way to treat chronic disease. Looking at health through the six pillars (categories) of lifestyle medicine creates effective treatment strategies to balance health.
1. Nutrition: Mostly Plants
Extensive scientific evidence supports a whole food, predominantly plant-based diet as an important strategy in preventing chronic disease, treating chronic conditions, and, in intensive therapeutic doses, reversing chronic illness. Such a diet is nutrient dense, rich in fiber and antioxidants, with a variety of minimally processed vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds.
2. Physical Activity: Movement
Regular and consistent physical activity combats the negative effects of sedentary behavior. Engaging in general physical activity and purposeful exercise weekly builds mental health, overall health, and resiliency.
3. Stress Management
Stress, when appropriate, may improve health and productivity, but in excess can lead to anxiety, depression, obesity, immune dysfunction and more. Helping patients recognize negative stress responses, identify coping mechanisms and stress reduction techniques leads to improved well-being.
4. Substances Use
Tobacco and excessive alcohol consumption increase the risk of chronic diseases and death, with similar impact from opioids and recreational drug use. Treatments take time, requiring varying approaches and many attempts, with patience and support essential to cease risky substance habits.
5. Restorative Sleep
Inadequate sleep causes sluggishness, low attention span, decreased sociability, depressed mood, decreased daytime caloric burn, increased hunger, decreased satiety, insulin resistance, and decreased performance. 7-9 hours nightly is associated with optimal health; under six hours or more than nine hours is associated with increased mortality.
6. Social Connection
Positive social connections and relationships affect our physical, mental, and emotional health. Leveraging the power of relationships and social networks can help reinforce healthy behaviors.
Contact UPMC Lifestyle Medicine
lifestylemed@upmc.edu
412-647-8611
Location: Fully virtual