Sourse: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

What is this about?

This edition of Connections newsletter provides an important article that addresses the potential for disease reversal. Published in an international scientific journal it raises the core premises of Lifestyle Medicine and examines the scope of potential economic benefit from the growth and application of this discipline.  Through the presentation of 4 patient case vignettes, the article offers a tantalizing glimpse of what happens when you begin to incorporate wellness interventions into clinical practice settings and populations.

The case vignettes included:

Case #1 is a 47-year-old male who recalls gradually worsening illness starting around the age of 25 that he partially attributes to poor food choices and opioid use. By the age of 36, he recalls knowing that he had “undeniable, serious illness,” and by the age of 38, he weighed over 400 pounds and suffered from severe sleep apnea, asthma and trouble breathing, eczema, allergies, hypertension (SBP/DBP= 255/155 on 2 medications), high total cholesterol (300 mg/dL), high triglycerides (279 mg/dL), and chronic shoulder and joint pain.

Case #2 is a 49-year-old female diagnosed with type 2 diabetes (T2D) on 3 January 2020. At this time, her fasting blood glucose was measured at 266 mg/dL, and HbA1c was 10.9%. She conducted daily glucose monitoring, was prescribed Metformin for glucose control and described herself as “living on pain meds” for headaches and joint pain. She began the Kaiser Medical Weight Management Program at a starting weight of 205 lbs.

Case #3 is a 50-year-old male who reported suffering from severe edema, hypokalemia, pre-diabetes, fatty liver, high blood pressure, obesity, severe arthritis, and “pinched nerves”. He had frequent clinician visits, as well as occasional ER and urgent care visits. He also required physical therapy and chiropractic care, his physician recommended gastric bypass surgery, and he was taking various medications.

Case #4 is currently a 60-year-old female who, prior to 2009, was experiencing high blood pressure, metabolic syndrome, constant migraines, frequent urinary tract infections (UTIs) or interstitial cystitis, frequent illnesses (cold, flu, etc.), rosacea, fatty liver syndrome, and hypothyroidism. She reports being on a number of medications.

Why is this important?

This article is important because it provides a detailed analysis of what can happen when you implement wellness and lifestyle interventions into 4 representative patient’s lives.  The analysis examines each of the individual’s current morbidity and health care use patterns and details the cost changes in their lives subsequent to lifestyle changes.  This information covers the personal or individual effects rather than the population centric effects.  It shows the significant potential health and economic effects of more aggressive wellness interventions with individuals.

What can you do with this document?

• First, skim the document for the major issues and findings presented by the authors.
• Next, identify where and when this information should be used to educate volunteers, staff, employees and managers.
• Next, determine where Lifestyle Medicine and wellness interventions can be addressed in your wellness program.
• Next, determine how you might emphasize the implications of these findings in the design and execution of your employee wellness program.
• Finally, review your progress in disease reversal and Lifestyle Medicine as you approach the next budget period and map out some new initiatives to address wellness interventions and/or Lifestyle Medicine.

In summary, this document provides interesting patient case insights about the use of wellness interventions under the auspices of Lifestyle Medicine and their potential to significantly reduce health care utilization and health care costs. It seems that this information should have great relevance to our senior managers and business decision-makers.

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I hope this tool helps you reach your wellness programming goals!  Drop me a note and let me know if you found it to be helpful.