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Avoid developing chronic conditions like dementia, diabetes, and even cancer, by understanding the drivers of disease.

If you’re interested in not getting ill, or reversing a chronic condition, listen to my Brave New Girls podcast guest this week, Dr. Sundhya Raman, an experienced GMC registered doctor. She became disenchanted with the limitations of conventional medicine to help chronic disease, trained in the science of health, happiness, and longevity, and co-founded My Wellness Doctor. She specialises in the burgeoning field of lifestyle medicine, empowering people to optimise their health through diet, lifestyle, and wellbeing choices—putting them in control of preventing and reversing disease.

Dr. Sundhya explains that Lifestyle Medicine is about using evidence from scientific research to make intentional changes to the way we live. The World Health Organization tells us that around 80% of chronic diseases and 50% of cancers stem from modifiable risk factors—elements we can influence, such as our lifestyle. We are no longer dealing primarily with infectious diseases, where the approach of seeking treatment only when ill was sufficient. Chronic diseases, like diabetes, dementia, and heart disease, are largely preventable, and by shifting our focus to proactive care, we can steer our health towards a better future.

Dr. Sundhya has seen the immense potential of lifestyle medicine. She works with organisations and patients alike, helping them to make small but impactful changes to prevent or even reverse chronic conditions. The key, she emphasises, is understanding the underlying drivers of diseases. Although these chronic conditions may present differently—diabetes in the pancreas, heart disease in the cardiovascular system, dementia in the brain—their root causes are often the same: poor diet, lack of movement, stress, and environmental factors. Genetics plays only a minor role in these diseases, contributing as little as 1% in heart disease and 3% in dementia.

So, what can we do to harness the power of lifestyle medicine to improve our health and wellbeing? See ten tips below.

Ten Actionable Steps for Better Health:

1. Eat a Whole Foods, Plant-Based Diet
   Increase your intake of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and legumes. Research shows that the best health outcomes are linked to diets rich in these foods.

2. Minimize Processed Foods
   Avoid ultra-processed foods that are high in sugars, unhealthy fats, and artificial additives. These contribute to inflammation and are linked to various chronic diseases.

3. Move Regularly
   Physical activity is crucial. Aim for at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise daily, whether walking, cycling, or gardening.

4. Prioritize Sleep
   Make sleep a non-negotiable. Try to get 7–9 hours of quality sleep each night, as it helps repair the body and reduce the risk of chronic diseases.

5. Manage Stress
   Engage in practices like mindfulness, meditation, or yoga to reduce stress, which is a major contributor to chronic illness.

6. Maintain a Healthy Weight
   Excess weight, particularly around the abdomen, increases the risk of several chronic diseases. Focus on a balanced diet and regular movement to manage weight effectively.

7. Build a Supportive Community
   Social connection is vital for mental and physical health. Cultivate relationships that support your wellbeing.

8. Limit Alcohol and Tobacco
   Avoid smoking entirely, and if you drink alcohol, do so in moderation—ideally, no more than one drink per day.

9. Monitor Your Health Regularly
   Keep track of your vital markers, such as blood pressure, cholesterol, and glucose levels, so you can address any issues early.

10. Stay Curious and Educated
    Keep learning about lifestyle medicine and make incremental changes. The more you know, the better equipped you are to make healthier choices.

Dr. Sundhya Raman advocates for using lifestyle medicine to prevent and reverse chronic diseases by making evidence-based changes to diet, exercise, sleep, and stress management. By prioritizing these habits, we can create a healthier future.

PS. Listen HERE to SUNDYA’s journey on BRAVE NEW GIRLS podcast to hear how she helps us help well beings on a well planet.