Physicians hold Continuing Medical Education webinar on lifestyle

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Indian-American physicians held a Webinar November 19, 2022, on Lifestyle Medicine & Wellness. It was joined by some 200 members of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin, AAPI.

“Lifestyle medicine is the simplest yet most powerful approach to true health and healing,” Dr. Ravi Kolli, president of AAPI is quoted saying in a press release from the organization Nov. 28. Kolli added that well-being is more than the absence of disease and that can be achieved through everyday practices, choices and habits.

Dr. Sreeni  Gangasani, chair of AAPI’s CME program, kicked off the event. Dr. Param Dedhia, a board-certified Integrative Medicine Physician, and Internal Medicine doctor, led the discussion.

“I Have a Carrot and a Stent, You Pick!,” Dr. Koushik R. Reddy, director of interventional cardiology at the James A Haley VA Medical Center in Tampa, FL, challenged participants; Dr. Kaushik Reddy emphasized the importance of a fundamental diet, physical activity, and other lifestyle approaches. He shared his commitment to the idea of health promotion and disease prevention, using lifestyle and nutrition-related tools. He emphasized applying the six pillars of lifestyle medicine—a whole-food, plant-predominant eating pattern, physical activity, restorative sleep, stress management, avoidance of risky substances, and positive social connections.

Dr.  Dedhia, founder and medical director of Moveo Health, a personalized health program focused on longevity, spoke on “Sleep, The Master Lever Of Health,” Sleep Medicine, he noted is just 40 years old in the United States. “Sleep is about restoring… Sleep evolves through adulthood. So, we must evolve our lifestyles to promote sleep,” he stressed, adding that most adults need 7 to 9 hours of sleep daily.

The importance of lifestyle interventions as the primary mode of prevention was the key message of the Webinar.

Dr Satheesh Kathula, vice president of AAPI, noted how key areas of evidence-based clinical nutrition and lifestyle practices which play a pivotal role in the prevention, treatment, and potential reversal of various common chronic diseases, are underappreciated at all levels of medical education and training. “There is an absolute need for a drastic reform of the US medical education system,” he said.

Dr, Pankaj Vu, Director of Lifestyle Medicine at Kaiser Permanente, thanked speakers and participants in his closing remarks.