Week 1 Post 1

 Introduction to Lifestyle Medicine 

                   Traditional Medicine                                           Lifestyle Medicine

             -Treats individual risk factor                                 -Treats lifestyle causes 

       -Patient is a passive recipient of care.                    -Patient is an active partner in care.

-Patient in not required to make any big changes.     -Patient is required to make big changes.

         -Treatment is usually short term                            -Treatment is always long term

          -Responsibility is on the doctor                        -Responsibility is shared with the patient

           -Medication="end" treatment                     -Some medication but emphasis on lifestyle changes.

    -Emphasizes diagnosis and prescription.                -Emphasizes motivation and compliance. 

          -Goal is disease management.                     -Goal is primary, secondary, tertiary prevention/reversal.

        -Less consideration of environment.                      -More consideration of environment. 

       -Side effects are balanced by benefits.                    -Side effects require greater attention.

        -Involves other medical specialties.                        -Involves allied health professionals.

-Doctors typically operate independently            -Doctors work with patients in groups with other doctors.

Primary prevention: Prevent disease/injury before it occurs. Accomplished by preventing exposure to hazards that cause disease, altering unhealthy and unsafe behaviors that can lead to disease/injury, and increasing resistance to disease and injury, should an exposure occur. 

Example: Legislation to ban or control use of hazardous products (like asbestos). 

Secondary Prevention: Reduce the impact of disease/injury that has already occurred. Done by detecting and treating disease/injury as soon as possible to slow its progress. Encouraging personal strategies to prevent rein jury or reoccurrence, and implementing programs to return people to their original health and function in order to prevent long term problems. 

Example: Routine exams and screening to detect disease (like mammograms).

Tertiary Prevention: Soften the impact of an ongoing illness and injury that has lasting effects. Accomplished by helping people manage long-term, often complex health problems (eg chronic disease), so that they can maintain their ability to function, quality of life, and improve their life expectancy. 

Example: Cardiac rehabilitation programs. 

The Best Kept Secret in Medicine:

"The best kept secret in medicine is that, given the right milleu, the body heals itself. Treating cardiovascular disease with appropriate dietary changes is good medicine. Patients can expect significant reduction in cholesterol level and cardiovascular mortality with our any adverse effects."

Public Health and Chronic Disease:

Leading cause of death and stability in the US, also among the most costly and preventable. 

-Physical inactivity, tobacco use and exposure, poor nutrition, lack of rest. 

Combined health and productivity cost savings of prevention=positive return on investment in a short time. 

Stats:

-1/2 adults --107 m people--reported having at least one of six chronic illnesses in 2008 (cardiovascular disease, cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, diabetes, arthritis).

-7/10 American deaths each year due to chronic disease

-50% of US deaths are due to heart disease, cancer, or stroke.

-1/3 US adults report having hypertension or high blood pressure. 70% of first heart attacks and 77% of first strokes occur in people with hypertension. 

-Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure (age 20-74) .

-Obesity costs in US is $147 billion annually (2008) and by 2030 it is expected to increase by $48 billion annually. 

-Annual loss is economic productivity due to obesity and related health conditions is $390-580 billion.

-Smoking-$193 billion 

McKinney, Amanda. "Introduction to Lifestyle Medicine". DoaneX: BIOL-212X.  https://courses.edx.org/courses/course-v1:DoaneX+BIOL-212x+2T2020/886f85ee3d284626b884d40ce7d80248/.

Stress and the gut

-Cytokine: Proteins released by immune system. The messengers that take information from the immune system around the body and then coordinate the initiation, maintenance, and resolution of those messages. A delicate balance is required for good health. 

         Cytokines respond not only to infection and trauma but also triggers like stress, food, and exercise. If           not tightly regulated, the impacts can be severe: inflammation, etc. 

2 Parts of The Autonomic Nervous System: 

Sympathetic Nervous System: Causes body to release stress-response hormones (ie. cortisol and non-adrenaline). Causes heart rate to quicken, lung tubes to widen, muscles to contract, pupils to dilate, and it switches off digestion. Takes energy away from other natural process. In the short term, it helps feel with stress. But, in the long term it becomes problematic. It is triggered by deadlines, commute stress, running late, tough workouts, etc. It can be managed with rest and relaxation. 

-Parasympathetic Nervous System: Involved in rest and relaxation. Saliva production increases, digestive enzymes are released, heart rate drops, and muscles relax. We need more time spent here!

Polyphenols: Class of phytonutrient.

Examples: Flaxseed, elements of dark chocolate, tea, broccoli and other vegetables, berries, etc. 

Strong antioxidants that help regulate "rusting" in your body and prevent damage. 

Benefits include: 

Lower inflammation

Slower aging

Reduced Blood Pressure 

Improved Brain Health 

Improved Blood Sugar Control

Better Cardiovascular Health 

Healthier Microbiome 

Improved immune function 

Changes I am making this week:

RELAX

Fifteen minutes of me time everyday.

Weekly screen free sabbath (keep screen time under 90 minutes)

EAT

Eat 5 different vegetable of 5 different colors everyday 

Unprocess my diet by avoiding food with more than 5 ingredients in the label. 

MOVE 

Walk 10,000 steps per day 

Incorporate daily movement "snacks".

SLEEP 

Drink caffeine before noon

Leave phone upstairs at night 

Chatterjee, Rangan. "How to Make Disease Disappear". HarperOne. 2018.