Lifestyle Modification is Always First Line Therapy

Did you know that the National Cholesterol Education Program, The American College of Cardiology, and the American Diabetes Association all recommend lifestyle changes as first line therapy for the treatment of hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes and  hypertriglyceridemia?

Many patients are so influenced by media and advertising that most think that drugs like lipitor, zocor, crestor, simvastatin, and lovaza are the first things they should turn to.  This is such a missed opportunity for most people today.  Lifestyle modification—changing the things that we can control in our life—is always a first choice.  It is recommend that we educate and treat with nutrition, diet, smoking cessation, increasing exercise, and stress reduction.  The unfortunate thing is that most conventionally trained docs just don’t have the time or knowledge base to educate patients.  Secondly, there is a lot of pressure from patients who hear about magic cure-all pills from television ads, to have their doctor just prescribe a medication.  Our current medical practices are doing little to advance lifestyle modification as the treatment of choice.  We are missing a huge opportunity to prevent chronic disease when we ignore this opportunity to intervene in a patient’s life. I believe that the majority of patients want to make change–they just don’t have the correct information, resources, and access to care to help themselves.

At Balanced Well-Being Healthcare we offer true lifestyle modification programs.  We have partnered with Metagenics, a very reputable nutracuetical company to offer First Line Therapy (FLT). FLT is a lifestyle program designed and developed to prevent and treat chronic disease.  Each client gets a personalized body composition analysis at the beginning of the program and a personal nutritional program.  Depending on individual goals and needs we combine medical foods and supplements with aggressive nutritional coaching.  FLT teaches patients important foundations about food combinations, meal planning, caloric needs and how to eat healthy for longterm success. FLT is designed for everyone. Not a single person would not fully benefit from a course through FLT. Even those with healthy weights and body mass index will gain significantly from the program to feel healthier, live with more energy, and detox the body.  As we go through the aging process, eliminating toxins from our body is critical in maintaining wellness. I encourage everyone to learn to eat clean and allow the body to perform at its peak.  First Line Therapy teaches us to how to do this.

I am delighted that ALL of our staff here at Balanced Well-Being Healthcare are trained to implement our FLT program. This is a tremendous opportunity for our patients to be a part of the change that is happening in the American medical culture.  We encourage our patients to get educated, partner with the doctor, and make lifestyle changes to achieve optimal health.  We try under all circumstances to avoid the use of medications when at all possible.

I am reminded about the lipitor ad—it reads “when lifestyle changes fail, turn to lipitor.”  I personally have not seen anyone fail lifestyle changes. I have seen, however, plenty of patients that have no idea how to implement change in their life. Let us be a part of your education and partner with you to make healthy choices.

At Balanced Well-Being Healthcare we offer body composition testing  along with First Line Therapy to monitor success and potential side effects of the program. Stay tuned for more on body composition testing and why everyone needs to know their personal numbers! Integrative medicine sees the practitioner and patient as partners in the quest for better health, and Balanced Well-Being Healthcare would love to partner with you!