Health Coaching Improves Physical Activity and Dietary Habits!
A new study released about integrating health coaching in a primary care model significantly improved several dietary measures and health outcomes!
Key Takeaways:
90% doubled, tripled, or quadrupled their intake of whole plant foods!
Improved sleep, HbA1c, cholesterol levels and daily fiber consumption!!
The researchers evaluated the impact and feasibility of patients that received lifestyle intervention integrated into a clinical setting, where doctors referred patients to a health coach and received 1:1 coaching over 6 months and group sessions after 6 months. The lifestyle intervention aimed to increase consumption of whole foods, improve sleep patterns, stress management techniques, and increase physical activity.
The analysis included an intervention cohort of 10 patients who were prescribed a healthy lifestyle and accepted the coaching, as well as comparison cohort of 10 patients who were prescribed but declined.
Among the intervention cohort, they found that after coaching:
90% of participants doubled, tripled or quadrupled their intake of whole foods
100% reported more than 6 hours of sleep, up from 40% at baseline
100% reported perceiving their level of health as equal to or greater than seven out of 10, up from 45% at baseline
Daily fiber consumption increased by 50%
Inflammation levels decreased by 56%
Additionally, physical activity significantly improved in intensity and regularity, according to the researchers.
Patients in the intervention also lost an average of 2.65% of their baseline weight — compared with 0.26% in the comparison cohort — and had an average reduction in HbA1c of 4.8%.
Finally, the researchers noted that cholesterol levels improved as much as 40% in some patients, which helped to keep them off statins.
They concluded that health & lifestyle coaching should be used only for patients who need or request it, and the study shows that its implementation in clinic settings is an effective and a feasible way to integrate lifestyle changes without disrupting the regular clinic workflow or adding to the workload of doctors.
This is great news for healthcare professionals, patients, and health coaches!
Who doesn’t want to improve their sleep, physical activity, nutrition, lose weight, and improve their bio markers???
Here’s to the healthiest you ever in 2024!
Jaclyn Rebekah Roberts NBC-HWC, CIHC, E-RYT 500
