Lifestyle medicine education empowers clinicians

Clinicians who completed an American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM) course introducing the foundations of lifestyle medicine and food as medicine reported significant improvements in their knowledge and confidence, as well as increases in how often they practice lifestyle medicine with patients, a research study found.

The findings are important because, while lifestyle behavior changes are often the optimal treatment option in clinical practice guidelines for noncommunicable chronic diseases, many clinicians cite their lack of knowledge and training in lifestyle behavior interventions as a barrier. A growing body of evidence supports the efficacy of lifestyle medicine to treat, reverse and prevent conditions, such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, cancer, and obesity.

As part of a broader strategy to address the education gap, ACLM offered the complimentary 5.5-hour CME/CE "Lifestyle Medicine and Food as Medicine Essentials" online course through its commitment to educate 200,000 clinicians in lifestyle and food as medicine in support of the 2022 White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health. As of Dec. 1, 53,035 clinicians have registered for the course.

Individuals who participated in the course could choose to participate in a research study designed to assess the course's effectiveness. The study involved the completion of a survey at the start and the end of the course that assessed knowledge, confidence, attitudes, and practice of lifestyle medicine.

Of the 2,954 participant surveys that were analyzed, statistically significant improvements were observed in knowledge and confidence of lifestyle medicine, according to the results published in the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine. Participants also reported more frequently practicing lifestyle medicine with their patients, as well as reaching a greater number of patients with lifestyle medicine services.

Lifestyle medicine clinicians are trained to apply evidence-based, whole-person, prescriptive lifestyle change to treat and, when used intensively, often reverse conditions such as cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, and obesity. Applying the six pillars of lifestyle medicine - a whole-food, plant-predominant eating pattern, physical activity, restorative sleep, stress management, positive social connections, and avoidance of risky substances - also provides effective prevention for these conditions.

Inadequate knowledge, skills, and confidence to practice lifestyle medicine and behavioral counseling are among the biggest obstacles to addressing the crisis of chronic disease, the root cause of which is primarily lifestyle behavior. The study's findings are encouraging because they demonstrate a real effect from an educational CME-accredited course that is cost-effective, disseminated virtually and, therefore, highly scalable. Future research should study the effects on long-term practice changes and health outcomes."

Micaela Karlsen, PhD, MSPH, Senior Director of Research, American College of Lifestyle Medicine