Lifestyle Medicine Education

Abstract

The actual causes of premature adult deaths, the preponderance of noncommunicable chronic diseases, and their associated costs are related to unhealthy behaviors, such as poor nutrition, physical inactivity, and tobacco use. Although recommended as the first line of prevention and management, providers often do not provide behavioral change counseling in their care. Medical education in lifestyle medicine is, therefore, proposed as a necessary intervention to allow all health providers to learn how to effectively and efficiently counsel their patients toward adopting and sustaining healthier behaviors. Lifestyle medicine curricula, including exercise, nutrition, behavioral change, and self-care, have recently evolved in all levels of medical education, together with implementation initiatives like Exercise is Medicine and the Lifestyle Medicine Education (LMEd) Collaborative. The goal of this review is to summarize the existing literature and to provide knowledge and tools to deans, administrators, faculty members, and students interested in pursuing lifestyle medicine training or establishing and improving an LMEd program within their institution.

Including Lifestyle Medicine in Medical Education: Rationale for American College of Preventive Medicine/American Medical Association Resolution 959

“…69 Lifestyle Medicine Board Certifications, American College of Lifestyle Medicine Residency Programs, and Resources for Change A driving force behind lifestyle medicine medical education is the American Board of Lifestyle Medicine's certification exam, launched in October 2017, and the 30-hour Lifestyle Medicine Core Competencies continuing medical education program provided the ACLM/American College of Preventive Medicine. 70,71 In addition, the Lifestyle Medicine Education Collaborative, a multi-organizational alliance that provides curricular resources, mentoring, and a robust partner community to help integrate lifestyle medicine education throughout the U.S and globally, 72 is in partnership with the National Board of Medical Examiners to pilot a customized exam to address the efficacy and competencies of lifestyle medicine that could be implemented in the Step I exam. 73 Finally, ACLM, Loma Linda University Health, and Lifestyle Medicine Education Collaborative have been involved in the development of a lifestyle medicine residency curriculum to pilot at multiple medical universities and teaching hospitals to allow participating residents to be qualified to sit for the American Board of Lifestyle Medicine exam after completion of the curriculum.…”

Are we adequately preparing the next generation of physicians to prescribe exercise as prevention and treatment? Residents express the desire for more training in exercise prescription

“…, or the establishment of the Institute of Lifestyle Medicine through Harvard Medical School. 38 However, overall exercise medicine has historically been marginalized in the face of competing interests and topics vying for coverage in medical curriculum.…”

Actividad física y nutrición en la educación médica

“…El Bipartisan Policy Center en Washington, D.C., en 2012, mencionó: "El entrenamiento en nutrición y actividad física debe ser incorporado en todas las fases de la educación médica" escuelas de medicina, programas de residencia y educación continuada (24) , confirmando la necesidad de desarrollar e implementar un currículo estándar sobre nutrición y actividad física en alianza con el Colegio Americano de Medicina del Deporte (25) . En 2007, el Colegio Americano de Medicina del Deporte creó la iniciativa "Exercise is medicine" para ayudar a mejorar la salud y el bienestar a través de la medición de la actividad física como un signo vital y ayudar a que médicos y personal de salud aprendan a prescribir actividad física (26) . De igual manera, en 2013 el Plan Nacional de Actividad Física de los Estados Unidos propuso incluir la enseñanza en actividad física en todos los niveles de educación de los profesionales de salud (27) .…”