Dr Ellen Fallows from Welbeck Health Partners discusses how embracing lifestyle medicine with professional support can help us address the root causes of long-term conditions to achieve better health with fewer medications.
The UK remains in a COVID-19 hangover. The average number of sick days per person has increased to 7.8 days each year from 5.8 days annually, many people are struggling with multiple long-term health conditions and socially we’re more isolated now than at any point this millennium.
In fact, global studies have proven social isolation poses a greater risk to our health than smoking and obesity combined. Professionals are working from home more than ever, essentials are being ordered direct to our doors and squeezes to the cost-of-living make it difficult for many to enjoy trips out beyond the boundaries of their home.
Increasingly complex health issues along with stress, isolation, poor quality food, inactivity, smoking and alcohol and inadequate sleep can impact our immune health, impairing our ability to fight off seasonal colds and flu. Additionally, the widespread reliance on medications, which are often not intended as long-term solutions, highlights the need for a more proactive approach to our health. By making positive lifestyle changes, individual can not only enhance their overall health and immunity, but also reduce dependence on medication, minimising the chances of side effects and leading to more sustainable improvements in health.
A new approach is needed in addition to modern medication and surgery options; lifestyle medication is a scientific approach which supports prevention, treatment and even reversal of the underlying drivers of some health problems. With this approach, medications can often be gradually reduced and even stopped – particularly medicines for Type-2 diabetes, obesity, depression and pain. For others, starting medications such as HRT, smoking cessation medications or new weight loss drugs, might be needed to help with starting the behaviour changes to address sleep, activity, smoking and diet for example.
This more holistic, minimal medication approach supports us with behaviour changes including personalised nutrition, fitness, sleep and lifestyle assessments to help us to sustainably improve our health, mood and energy with fewer pills. Intensive, supported interventions such as fasting mimicking diets, shown to trigger cell renewal (known as autophagy), are also available for those needing to see rapid health changes, for example prior to an operation, chemotherapy treatment or IVF. However, it is important to note that these powerful, evidence-based interventions should be undertaken with medical supervision, particularly for individuals on other medications.
Experience as a general physician means I can take a whole-person approach to health issues, avoiding the pitfalls with modern medicine often focuses on single-organs rather than the whole body. My expertise lies in lifestyle medicine and sustainable weight loss treatments within the NHS, whilst teaching this approach as course lead at the University of Oxford. Welbeck Health, Jordan Hill in Oxford will be one of the first UK centres to offer this new global medical practice of lifestyle medicine.
We all know what a healthy and active lifestyle looks like and how it can positively contribute to our overall wellbeing, but achieving this is very challenging. It is particularly hard to achieve if we are already on multiple medicines and have many other complex health problems such as long-covid, menopause symptoms, obesity, type-2 diabetes or depression.
Many of you will be reading this column with new year’s resolutions in mind. And leading a healthier life and prioritising wellbeing is often top of people’s lists.
So, where can we start? Lifestyle medicine describes 6 key pillars that clinicians can asses and support;
1. Mental wellbeing: Your mental health is intimately linked to your physical health, treating this at the same time as your physical health issues is critical. This doesn’t always need antidepressants but can involve scientifically proven nutritional psychiatry interventions which range in intensity. We will support you to improve sleep and address isolation, meaning and purpose.
2. Addressing nutrition: We can support you to simply improve overall nutrition but also with intensive medically supervised nutritional interventions to achieve substantial and rapid health changes including improvements in mood, sleep and remission of some long-term conditions such as obesity, Type-2 diabetes, high blood pressure and chronic pain. The science of nutritional interventions for health has rapidly progressed with some specific targeted options depending on your health needs.
3. Improving sleep: Sleep has been underestimated in health, we will assess your sleep quality and help address factors that may be affecting sleep quality, including prescribed medications.
4. Reducing harmful substances: We will support you to reduce alcohol, smoking and even reducing medications that may be promoting weight gain or adversely affecting your mood. We can also prescribe alternative medications that can help with these behavioural changes.
5. Supporting physical activity: At whatever level of fitness, we can help you to creative activity habits that are realistic, effective and fit in with your daily demands and health conditions. Activity can be anything you enjoy and can result in rapid improvements in sleep, mood and pain if supported in a gradual and sustainable way.
6. Building social connections: Connecting with others is critical for health, we can support you to assess what you could prioritise to improve healthy relationships in your life. This includes building a beneficial therapeutic relationship face to face in our clinic.
This approach incorporates preventative health care to pick up problems early. Lifestyle interventions can be targeted and your progress monitored. We will support you with state-of-the-art wearable devices that are convenient, accurate and help to motivate and monitor the effectiveness of the changes you are making.
Everyone has different needs, health challenges or goals. We take detailed, whole person and personalised assessments including detailed discussion, clinical examination and tests to create your treatment plan.
Lifestyle medicine is an exciting new global medical discipline and welcome addition to Welbeck Health Partners’ premium healthcare services. Whether you want better health with fewer medications, weight loss medications with a more holistic and sustainable approach or want to improve outcomes from your planned surgery, chemotherapy or IVF – we can help you to maximise your health with fewer long-term pills.
A combination of increasing viral infections, low light, low levels of Vitamin D and increased exposure to artificial light means winter can be a particularly challenging time to maintain levels of positive wellbeing. Ensuring you’re surrounded by professional support means you’ll be best placed to stick your 2025 resolutions through January and beyond.
Welbeck Health Partners’ Oxford centre is due to open in autumn 2025. The centre will be its second private healthcare clinic and will enable the group to provide comprehensive healthcare coverage across the south of England.
The group is investing over £30million into the Oxford site which will offer a comprehensive suite of medical services and cater to 12 specialities including digestive health, heart health, ENT, lung health and genetics.
Further information is available online via Welbeck Health Partners
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