Chronic diseases, as the leading cause of death and disability in the US, are a source of frustration for health care professionals and patients alike. Health care professionals feel ill-equipped to curb the epidemic levels, while symptom management creates a vicious and extended disease cycle for the patient.
Health care professionals who participate in this 5.5 hour CME/CE* opportunity will receive a foundational, evidence-based introduction to the field of lifestyle medicine and engage in focused nutrition education for the prevention and treatment of chronic disease.
*Full accreditation information provided here.
Formal education and training simply do not include foundational tactics that address the root causes of many chronic conditions.
The first recommendation in chronic disease guidelines, across the board, is lifestyle modification. Yet, the average physician receives only 19 hours of nutritional education in medical school,1 which is below the recommended 25 minimum hours from the National Academy of Sciences.2 Professionals must look to continuing education to bolster their knowledge and skills, empowering patients to adopt transformational habits affecting their health.
We have partnered with the American College of Lifestyle Medicine to alter the dynamic.
This training package illustrates six key interventions to treat lifestyle-related chronic conditions based on clinical practice guidelines. It is designed to equip physicians and healthcare professionals with the knowledge and tools to support treatment and risk reduction of common lifestyle-related conditions, with a focus on cardiovascular disease, insulin resistance, cancer prevention, and obesity.
1 Radlicz C. A Time for Change: Nutrition Education in Medicine. ASN. 2017; https://nutrition.org/a-time-for-change-nutrition-education-in-medicine/.
2 Danek R. Perceptions of Nutrition Education in the Current Medical School Curriculum. Fam Med. 2017 Nov;49(10):803-806.
DEFINITION OF LIFESTYLE MEDICINE
Lifestyle medicine is a medical specialty that uses therapeutic lifestyle interventions as a primary modality to treat chronic conditions including, but not limited to, cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, and obesity. Lifestyle medicine certified clinicians are trained to apply evidence-based, whole-person, prescriptive lifestyle change to treat and, when used intensively, often reverse such conditions. Applying the six pillars of lifestyle medicine—a whole-food, plant-predominant eating pattern, physical activity, restorative sleep, stress management, avoidance of risky substances and positive social connections—also provides effective prevention for these conditions.
VALUE PROPOSITION FOR LIFESTYLE MEDICINE
Lifestyle medicine can address up to 80% of chronic diseases. A lifestyle medicine approach to population care has the potential to arrest the decades-long rise in the prevalence of chronic conditions and their burdensome costs. Patient and provider satisfaction often results from a lifestyle medicine approach, which strongly aligns the field with the Quintuple Aim of better health outcomes, lower cost, improved patient satisfaction, improved provider well-being, and advancement of health equity, in addition to its alignment with planetary health. Lifestyle medicine is the foundation for a redesigned, value-based and equitable healthcare delivery system, leading to whole person health.
VALUE PROPOSITION FOR ACLM
As the nation’s only medical professional association representing the interdisciplinary field of lifestyle medicine, the American College of Lifestyle Medicine represents a galvanized force for change; members are united in their dedication to identify and eradicate the root causes of chronic disease, with the clinical outcome goal of health restoration. ACLM closes the gap in evidence-based education in lifestyle medicine across the spectrum of pre- and post-professional training. Along with training and support of its members in their individual practices, ACLM advocates lifestyle medicine as the first and optimal whole-person treatment option for all people, mitigating much of the non-communicable, chronic disease epidemic.