Rutgers NJMS Lifestyle Medicine

Throughout medical school we are taught to treat the patient, with special emphasis on finding a treatment that is least invasive. However, as the practice of medicine currently stands, physicians are more often prescribing pharmacological drugs to subdue symptoms rather than addressing the root cause of their patients’ diseases. In a country where chronic diseases are the leading causes of mortal

ity, it is up to our generation of physicians to revolutionize the field by emphasizing the importance of addressing the root cause of all these diseases: lifestyle choices. A myriad of medical studies consistently show that the practice of healthy lifestyle choices (e.g. nutrition, exercise, cessation of to***co, stress management) is the answer to the prevention and, more importantly, treatment of most chronic diseases. Lifestyle modification happens to be the most efficacious and cost-effective form of treating these chronic diseases. In fact, the prevalence of chronic disease in America would decrease by 80% simply through the practice of better lifestyle choices. We hope that the physicians of tomorrow will be best equipped in not only preventing the worsening of conditions, but also in reversing the deleterious effects that have already occurred through treating the root causes. This can be achieved by training physicians in prescribing patients a vast array of lifestyle modifications relevant to the patient’s chronic disease or risk factors. All doctors recommend eating healthy and exercising, but there is a huge gap in simply advising it, and being competent in counseling to promote lifestyle changes. Change must start at the top, and as future physicians it is our civic duty to lead by example. Please take a look at these links and see what the movement is all about:

1) http://www.instituteoflifestylemedicine.org
2) http://www.lifestylemedicine.org
3) http://lifestylemedicineeducation.org
4) http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=186192