Exercise AS Medicine – Overcoming the Obesity Epidemic by Prescribing Wellness and Fitness Instead of Just Medicine

The explosive growth in medical weight loss, hormone replacement and other anti-aging protocols means men and women are seeking wellness solutions from doctors more than ever. Using the internet, doctors can combine their expertise in medicine with exercise, nutrition and other general wellness information to provide a comprehensive daily support vehicle for patients like never before. Why is this not happening more often?

According to a report by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) released this year, patients are 5 times more likely to diet and exercise if their doctors tell them to do so. But only one out of 3 doctors provides helpful advice.

The February 2012 report from the CDC seems to indicate that most doctors give their patients lip service about losing weight and getting their blood pressure under control. Instead of offering any real advice or recommendations about diet and exercise, most doctors tell patients that they SHOULD lose weight, or exercise or start a diet. Few doctors provide a plan or a roadmap for their patients to follow. According to experts in medical fitness, most doctors who do give any real advice have been traditionally referring patients to a third party nutritionist or personal trainer or sending patients to find help on the internet, without any guidance. In a new trend, however, doctors are beginning to see the benefits of actually giving their patients a plan for their weight loss and fitness.

Want more information about wellness as medicine for your patients? Click here!

Sparked by updates to the National Physical Activity Guidelines, a multi-million dollar physical activity initiative sponsored primarily by Coca-Cola known as “Exercise is Medicine” and more specific recommendations for prescribed fitness coming from organizations like the Canadian Diabetes Association, doctors are now looking for ways to give more specific and supportive advice to patients. The Canadian Diabetes Association recently created an “Exercise Prescription” form for patients with diabetes that doctors can use to prescribe physical activity to patients. Although the recommendations are fairly general, they give patients guidelines on how much exercise to do and whether to do resistance training, aerobic exercise, etc. and that’s a great start.

After evaluating a patient in the office and determining that a patient would benefit from a particular protocol, doctors typically prescribe a weight loss or hormone replacement plan. Patients pay for their prescription and receive their medications but receive little if any daily support for the use of their medications, much less what to do each day to ensure success. Doctors who enroll patients into a protocol using BodySite can deliver to the patients a daily interactive plan that can include advice about diet, exercise, supplements and any other information the doctor wishes to include in the plan.

Want more information about wellness as medicine for your patients? Click here!

Patients or clients can access their program from the web or app, anywhere they go. They can track calories, activity, body metrics, and journal about their progress. Using BodySite, you can provide more engaging lifestyle advice that produces better results.

It’s time to give patients more than just medicine. Learn more about a unique wellness and weight loss practice solution here.