Past Events and Updates
China Lifestyle Medicine Alliance 2021 Virtual Conference
May 5-6, 2021, China
China Lifestyle Medicine Alliance (CLMA) held the first conference in China that focuses on Lifestyle Medicine. It was hosted online on May 5-6, 2021, and gathered over 100 health professionals.
The virtual conference was streamed from the CLMA official Wechat account, and it was reposted in many other professional groups.
Since the CLMA is just established, the conference used some translated international resources to give the audience an accurate understanding of the Lifestyle Medicine field. The international presenters were introduced during morning sessions, while Chinese health professionals delivered the afternoon sessions from China and overseas, so the audience could interact with speakers.
For more information about CLMA, visit http://chinalma.com/
2nd International Polish Society of Lifestyle Medicine Congress, entitled HEALTHSPAN, hosted between 7th and 13th December gathered over 1500 participants.
This year’s edition, although fully online, was transmitted straight from the newly established, first in Poland Lifestyle Medicine Department based at medical education institution – School of Public Health at the Centre of Postgraduate Medical Education.
The congress had a hybrid form and lasted for the entire week. From Monday to Friday the participants received daily access to a session on a different theme. Each day presented them with a chance to learn more about the application and implementation of lifestyle medicine in different branches of medicine: psychiatry, diabetology, paediatrics or family medicine.
This part was also an official premiere of the ten episodes series of culinary medicine recordings “Lifestyle medicine in the kitchen”.
The main part of the event was hosted live over the weekend. The first day brought into light the intersections of lifestyle medicine and public health. The second day focused on the promotion of lifestyle medicine good practices in Poland.
Every day was accompanied by a daily dose of activity – virtual live training delivered by PSLM Partner – @exercise is medicine Poland team.
The keynote speakers list included LM Leaders from around the world including:
- Prof. Elizabeth Pegg Frates (Lifestyle Medicine Institute, Harvard Medical School; President-Elect American College of Lifestyle Medicine)
- Prof. Gary Egger (founder and Board Member of the Australasian Society of Lifestyle Medicine)
- Dr Sam Manger (President of the Australasian Society of Lifestyle Medicine)
- Dr Rob Lawson (Chairman of The British Society of Lifestyle Medicine, President of the European Lifestyle Medicine Council)
- Simon Matthews (CEO WellCoaches Australia, Australasian Society of Lifestyle Medicine)
American College of Lifestyle Medicine 2020 virtual conference
October 22-25, 2020, US
Making an early decision to move our annual conference to a fully virtual event for 2020 was intimidating on many levels, but the outcome and success was worth the shift. We were able to keep members, speakers, staff, and sponsors safe while extending the reach of Lifestyle Medicine to new audiences. We engaged more than 1900 professionals over three days with inclusive content and renowned speakers.
The conference began with a panel of legendary pioneers that truly originated our research base and defined how we practice within the field of lifestyle medicine. It’s always good to recognize our history. In a way, the innovations we are now adapting to payment models and patient interactions stand on a solid foundation and become more powerful.
The events main days proceeded through an astounding collection of topics and speakers from Edmond Tori, DO empowering attendees to administer behavior change tactics with a change in perspective to a panel on Health Disparities, to Dean Ornish, MD, with Drs. Dean and Ayesha Sherzai with a prescription for Alzheimer’s. The days went on to offer Roy Taylor, MD and an inspiring talk on Type 2 Diabetes and Anand Parek, MD the Chief Medical Advisor of the Bipartisan Policy Committee urging us as a nation to make prevention a prioity. The content was compelling and ACLM will proudly offer each talk for continued education credit in 2021 through our Learning Management System.
Septemer 3-5, 2020, UK
The British Society of Lifestyle Medicine held its fourth annual conference in September – its first-ever virtual event.
Over three days, delegates enjoyed presentations from expert speakers from around the world covering a broad range of lifestyle medicine-related topics. A series of live Q&A sessions also gave delegates the chance to put questions live on the day to speakers. Poster presentations from BSLM’s annual Call for Abstracts were also displayed virtually – and huge congratulations to Dr Sui Wong and the team at Guys & St Thomas NHS Foundation Trust who were announced as this year’s Poster Competition winners for their work delivering virtual group consultations.
You can read a full report on the conference on the BSLM website.
Philippine College of Lifestyle Medicine Online Summit 2020
Septemer 13-15, 2020, Philippines
The Philippine College of Lifestyle Medicine held its fourth annual conference themed ‘Lifestyle Medicine: The U-turn for Chronic Diseases.’ The first-ever virtual summit showcased 27 well renowned international and local speakers. Led by PCLM current president, Dr. Mechelle Acero Palma, more than 200 conference attendees were inspired by the conference’s profound lectures. The event was supported by the Department of Health, Department of Agriculture, the City of Manila’s local government, and the local government of Tagbilaran City, Bohol. PCLM hopes that it has come closer to bridging the gap between routine health promotion and intentional prescription of lifestyle therapy for chronic diseases through the keynote speeches, plenary lectures, and concurrent sessions of this year’s event. It is the mission of PCLM to advance Lifestyle Medicine in both clinical and public health practices to prevent, arrest, and even reverse chronic diseases.
In their feedback doctors, allied healthcare professionals, public policy-makers, and health enthusiasts shared that the virtual conference improved their understanding of the best practices in both disease prevention and treatment. Many attendees shared that Lifestyle Medicine helps healthcare providers genuinely care and support patients in their journey towards better health. As one of our lifestyle medicine diplomates, Dr. Dexter Macalintal, put it – Lifestyle Medicine brings back the ‘care’ in healthcare.
Mid-year Conference of The Philippine College of Lifestyle Medicine
February 2-4, 2020
Davao City, Philippines
The Philippine College of Lifestyle Medicine (PCLM) was recognized by the Philippine Medical Association as a sub-specialty society of the Philippine Academy of Family Physicians, December 5, 2019, during their first Post-Graduate Course at the Philippine Medical Association Auditorium. As an official PMA organization, one of the requirements is to have 2 conferences a year, a mid-year and an annual conference. This year’s first Mid-Year Conference of the PCLM was held in Davao City, the home town of their beloved Country’s President, his Excellency, Rodrigo R. Duterte.
The inaugural Mid-Year Conference held from February 2-4, 2020, was attended by 120+ participants, which surpassed the expected 70 attendee mark. The 3 big island groups of the Philippines, Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao were equally well represented by physicians, allied health professionals and advocates of Lifestyle Medicine from different sectors of society including the Agricultural sector and Pharmaceuticals. The conference was graced with international speakers’ Dr. Tonya Cramer and Kinesiologist Jeff Young. The theme was an echo of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine theme during their annual conference in 2019, “Lifestyle Medicine: The Foundation of Healthcare”. There were 3 Pre-conference workshops held, Culinary Medicine, Physical Activity Science & Prescription, and one on Health Coaching. Post-conference, the IBLM exam was professionally proctored with a 93% passing rate among exam takers. In the afternoon, a Complete Health Improvement Program (CHIP) Facilitator’s Training was conducted, wrapping up the events of the whole conference.
LMGA @ LM2019!
1500 attendees representing 35 countries! Thank you to all those who attended the first LMGA workshop and the ACLM conference. More details to come!
Society of Lifestyle Medicine in Nigeria Conference
November 29-Dec 1, 2019
Abuja, Nigeria
The theme of the 2nd International Lifestyle Medicine Conference conference was “Lifestyle Medicine: Revolutionizing the Management of Chronic Diseases in the 21st Century” with the sub theme “The Emergence of Epigenetics in the Management of Chronic Diseases.” Following the lectures, panel discussions and interactions, the participants adopted the following resolutions:
- Lifestyle medicine should be the foundation of healthcare in Nigeria. All medical professionals in the health sector should adopt the use of therapeutic lifestyle interventions in the primary treatment of lifestyle-related diseases.
- Therapeutic lifestyle interventions are vital in addressing the root cause of diseases rather than the conventional way of managing symptoms.
- Gaps in health literacy regarding the understanding and processing of basic health information should be addressed to inform health decisions.
- Agricultural activities among Nigerian farmers should be promoted and supported to increase the production of organic, pesticide-free, plant-based foods and whole grains and fruits. This will ensure availability of healthy food to the general populace and forestall importation of fruits and vegetables.
- Every citizen has a responsibility to protect the environment. Do not cut down trees unless you will replace them. This will preserve the ozone layer and reduce the harmful effects of climate change.
Notre Dame University-Louaize (NDU) Conference
October 11-12, 2019
Zouk Mosbeh, Lebanon
Notre Dame University-Louaize (NDU) Faculty of Nursing and Health Sciences (FNHS) launched in collaboration with the Lifestyle Medicine Global Alliance the “Transformative Power of Lifestyle Medicine” conference: the first of its kind in Lebanon.
The conference featured local and international experts, from academics to healthcare professionals, who shared their expertise in employing lifestyle changes as a means of preventing and treating non-transmittable chronic diseases.
The keynote speaker was Dr. Wayne Dysinger, MD, MPH. A leading figure in the lifestyle medicine movement, Dr. Dysinger has an extensive resume both as an academic and healthcare professional: he has served as chair of the Preventive Medicine Department at Loma Linda University, one of the founders and third President of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, chair of the International Board of Lifestyle Medicine, either in board or consulting roles for the American Medical Association, the Association for Prevention Teaching and Research, the American Medical Student Association, and the Ardmore Institute of Health. Currently, Dr. Dysinger serves as Chief Executive Officer for Lifestyle Medicine Solutions – a new model primary care clinic concept that is built on Lifestyle Medicine principles – and Medical Director of the Complete Health Improvement Program (CHIP), and an active faculty at Loma Linda University, and is on the board of the American College of Preventive Medicine.
Turnout for the conference was very high, with around 400 attendees on the first day, and over 70 attendees on every workshop of the second day. More information on the conferences as a whole, the talks presented, the speakers, and the chairs can be found here.
Philippine College of Lifestyle Medicine Conference
August 25-26, 2019
Cebu City, Philippines
The 3rd Annual Conference of the Philippine College of Lifestyle Medicine was a smashing success!
It was attended by nearly 220 participants from various sectors of government (including the Departments of Health and Agriculture), from private organizations (including the Philippine Heart Center), from health insurance companies (including Maxicare Healthcare Corporation), and from corporations, pharmacists, physicians from the Philippine College of Physicians, Philippine Academy of Family Physicians, Philippines Pediatrics Society, Philippine Obstetrical and Gynecological Society, private practitioners of the Philippine Medical Association and various sponsors.
Local and international speakers included Dr. Hans Diehl, founder of the Complete Health Improvement Program (CHIP), Dr. Dexter Shurney, President of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, Dr. Siva Poobalasingham, President of the Malaysian Society of Lifestyle Medicine, and Stephan Herzog, Executive Director of the International Board of Lifestyle Medicine. All shared their expertise in various aspects of Lifestyle Medicine practice, training and certification.
The conference was followed by an IBLM exam and a CHIP Facilitators Training on Aug 27. The future of Lifestyle Medicine in the Philippines looks bright as interests in the field cross unimaginable borders, and reach influential health executives, health professionals and government officials.
For more information about PCLM visit https://lifestylemedicinephilippines.org/
British Society of Lifestyle Medicine Conference
June 21-22, 2019
Cardiff, UK
More than 400 delegates attended the third annual British Society of Lifestyle Medicine Conference in Cardiff in June.
The two-day conference in the Welsh capital was an opportunity to celebrate the “art and science of healthy longevity’ with a packed itinerary of lifestyle medicine speakers educating and entertaining members and guests. Experts included Professor Peter Elwood, creator of the influential Caerphilly cohort study which has resulted in over 400 lifestyle-related scientific publications since 1979.
The society received a major boost with the announcement that Olympic gold medalist Dame Kelly Holmes will be its new #1change ambassador. BSLM’s #1change campaign was launched at last year’s conference in Edinburgh and aims to encourage people to make healthy lifestyle choices #1change at a time. Dame Kelly spoke to the conference via video link about the important connection between physical activity and mental health.
BSLM founder and chairman Rob Lawson said: “Our conference and the society continue to grow in ways we never could have imagined at the outset. Lifestyle medicine is now mainstream and its potential is being realised by doctors and health professionals across the UK. It was inspiring to hear about their work as well as the growing body of evidence in support of lifestyle medicine approaches. By creating opportunities for open and honest debate about lifestyle medicine, the conference offered a friendly and constructive platform to tackle some of the key issues at the heart of our movement right now.”
For more information about BSLM visit bslm.org.uk
Australasian Society of Lifestyle Medicine Conference
June 7-9, 2019
Auckland, New Zealand
With the overarching theme of ‘Innovation and Intervention, Environment and Equity’, the fourth international conference on Lifestyle Medicine in science, health policy and clinical practice to be held in Australasia (and the first of its kind to be held in New Zealand!) was a roaring success.
Approximately 430 delegates converged in Auckland, Aotearoa, to explore contemporary topics in Lifestyle Medicine, including:
- Reversing type 2 diabetes, overweight, risk factors and metabolic dysfunction
- Microbiome and health tech: Emerging science, innovation and application
- Mental health: Mood disorders, emotional wellbeing and more
Transforming Health & Health Care Through Lifestyle Medicine
April 21-25, 2019
Seoul, South Korea
This marks the third annual Asian Society of Lifestyle Medicine conference, serving to unite Asian countries that have or are establishing Lifestyle Medicine medical professional associations.
Lifestyle Medicine: Theory & Practice
April 11-12, 2019
Kaunas, Lithuania
Lithuania champions the field of Lifestyle Medicine, hosts 5th Annual International Congress and fills the void in Lifestyle Medicine education with first IBLM Lifestyle Medicine Certification exam.
The Lithuanian Lifestyle Medicine Association, led by President Egle Mineviciene, MD, hosted its 5th annual Lifestyle Medicine Congress in Kaunas, Lithuania on April 11, 2019. ACLM Founding Member and Advisory Board Member Hans Diehl, Dr HSc, MPH, presented, along with Drs. Maselli and Lawson, from Italy and UK, along with ACLM’s Susan Benigas, and an outstanding line-up of Lifestyle Medicine and global health experts.
Co-sponsoring the event was Kaunas University, where the first-ever master’s program in Lifestyle Medicine is offered in the School of Public Health, presided over by Dean Ramune Kalediene, MD, with Tomas Vaiciunas, PhD directing the fast-growing master’s program.
April 13-14, 2019
Warsaw, Poland
Alicja Baska, completing her sixth year of med school at the Medical University of Warsaw in June, and Dr. Daniel Sliz, Assistant Professor in the Medical University of Warsaw 3rd Department of Internal Medicine and Cardiology, are two of the eight co-founders of the new Polish Society of Lifestyle Medicine. April 13-14 marked the inaugural Lifestyle Medicine International Congress, hosted in Warsaw by Poland’s new Lifestyle Medicine medical professional society.
Nearly 500 attendees gathered to hear presenters that included Dr. Rob Lawson, founding president of the British Society of Lifestyle Medicine, Dr. Luigi Maselli, founding president of the Mediterranean Society of Lifestyle Medicine, and Susan Benigas, executive director of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine
American College of Lifestyle Medicine Annual Conference
October 2018
Thank you to our international attendees who joined us in Indianapolis, Indiana for Lifestyle Medicine 2018, Real Healthcare Reform. Nearly 100, representing 35 countries, were part of nearly 1,200 conference registrants.
ACLM hosted a special Lifestyle Medicine Global Alliance dinner at their LM2018 conference, please find attached a PDF of the highlights publication that was distributed at the LMGA dinner meeting. In addition, regional highlights from around the globe were shared from the main stage, and a special informational breakfast was held to allow participants from around the globe to connect.
Italian Lifestyle Medicine Association
July 2018
Dr. Luigi J. Maselli, President of the Italian Lifestyle Medicine Association taught an inaugural Lifestyle Medicine Course at the University of Bari Aldo Moro. The students were so inspired by the course, they wrote this Letter of Thanks.
African Lifestyle Medicine Association
June 2018
The first international LSMConference in Africa was held August 5-7, 2017. Abuja, Nigeria co-hosted by the Lifestyle Medicine Practitioners Association of Nigeria and the Brookfield Centre for Lifestyle Medicine, Abuja.
The newly formed African Lifestyle Medicine Association ALMA, is on a membership drive. All healthcare professionals in Africa as well as Africans in the diaspora, interested in being foundation members, joining forces with the core team, to please contact the Lead Physician, Dr Ifeoma Monye, by email at doctorify.lifestylemedicine@gmail.com, for further details.
The 2nd international LSM conference in Africa is gearing up to hold early 2019.
The Third Food as Medicine Conference
May 19, 2018
Poland
The 3rd edition of the conference was held on May 19, 2018. Organized by International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations IFMSA-Poland Warsaw and Lifestyle Medicine Interest Group based at Medical University of Warsaw addressing primarily future and graduate doctors. The conference highlights the importance of nutrition education within this group of health professionals filling up the gap in medical education curricula.
The event is open also to other medical degrees such as dietetics, public health, physiotherapy or dentistry.
The Conference consists of two parts: expert lectures focusing on the role of nutrition in prevention and treatment of different diseases and “Evidence-Based Lifestyle Medicine” session prepared by LMIG students being a series of presentations summarising the most recent and meaningful research in the LM field.
British Society of Lifestyle Medicine – Nutrition by the Experts
May 31, 2018
An event for healthcare professionals and students interested in nutrition delivered by some of the leading experts in nutrition hosted by the British Society of Lifestyle Medicine at the University College London. Leading experts including Professor Bruce Griffin, Dr Tony Goldstone, Dr Nichola Guess RD, Martin MacDonald RNutr, Jenny Rosborough RNutr and Dr Eirini Dimidi RD who will be presenting on a range of topics including “good fats, bad fats”, Myth busting, microbiome, sugar addiction, low carb v low fat diets, public health nutrition and the “best diet” for weight loss.
First National Lifestyle Medicine Congress
April 21-22, 2018
Poland
On April 21-22nd, 2018, Medical University of Warsaw’s 3rd Department of Internal Medicine & Cardiology and Lifestyle Medicine Scientific Club established within, in cooperation with Department of Social Medicine and Public Health, held the 1st National Lifestyle Medicine Congress.
The multidisciplinary event gathered over 350 participants – students of medical universities from all over Poland, health professionals ia. doctors, nutritionists, physiotherapists, public health specialists as well as patients.
Importance of healthy lifestyle in prevention and treatment as well as possibilities of implementing lifestyle interventions to the healthcare and medical education systems in Poland were widely discussed by a group of almost 40 guest speakers – Medical University of Warsaw, Centre of Postgraduate Medical Education, Medical University of Łódź, Medical University of Silesia or Lithuanian University of Health Sciences specialists.
Part of the Congress – poster session – included over 20 works.
The Congress was inaugurated by prof. Artur Mamcarz, MD, PhD – Chief of the 3rd Department of Internal Medicine&Cardiology. Opening speech was given by President of the Congress’ Scientific Committee: Daniel Śliż, MD, PhD. The next lectures were grouped in blocks: public health, physical activity, nutrition and telemedicine.
Some of the participants chose to finish a conference day by implementing theory in practice and participating in fitness class organized by representative of Exercise is Medicine Polska.
On the second day, the lecture blocks addressing health professionals and students were continued accordingly: mental health, environmental pollutions, vaccines. At the same time, non-professionals: patients and their families had a chance to participate in a series of practical lectures called ‘A Patient’s Day’ devoted to a role of different components of lifestyle in health maintenance and improvement.
The official closing of the Congress had a form of a panel discussion moderated by Daniel Śliż, MD, PhD. The panel experts: prof. Andrzej Radzikowski, MD, PhD, Marcin Grabowski, MD, PhD, Jarosław Pinkas MD, PhD, Zbigniew Kowalski and att. Oskar Luty representing different fields of medicine, governmental structures as well as experts on patient communication and medical law discussed future of lifestyle medicine in Poland – implementing LM into healthcare and medical education systems.
Participants had also a possibility to attend workshops on: culinary medicine, prescribing physical activity, communication with patient and quitting smoking.
The events Honorary Patrons included: Ministry of Health, Ministry of Sport and Tourism, National Institute of Public Health – National Institute of Hygiene, National Food&Nutrition Institute, Lifestyle Medicine Global Alliance, Lifestyle Medicine Education Collaborative, American College of Lifestyle Medicine, European Lifestyle Medicine Organization.
Scientific Committee: President – Daniel Śliż, MD, PhD, members: prof. Artur Mamcarz, MD, PhD, Aneta Nitsch-Osuch, MD, PhD, Marcin Wełnicki, MD, PhD, dr n. o zdr. Damian Parol, PhD, Wojciech Stefan Zgliczyński, PhD.
Organizing Committee: President: Alicja Baska, members: Kamila Borkowska, Piotr Długołęcki Adriana Durczak, Magdalena Goryszewska, Anita Grochowska, Katarzyna Gugała, Aleksandra Hyży, Aleksandra Karczemna, Magdalena Kicińska, Izabela Marzec, Julia Mazurek, Zuzanna Osica, Maria Sakwarelidze, Aleksandra Słokotowicz, Wiktoria Weimert, Izabela Wrzołek.
Lifestyle Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine
Qatar, 2018
The Institute for Population Health (IPH) at Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar (WCM-Q) has been at the forefront of raising awareness among health practitioners in the Middle East about the value of treating and preventing chronic diseases with lifestyle medicine. Recently, the Institute developed a 50-hour Certificate in Clinical Nutrition course, which was sold out on both the occasions it was offered. An upcoming development is the delivery of an innovative Certificate in Lifestyle/ Integrative Medicine course. Additionally, WCM-Q plans to hold discussions with local health and academic institutions about establishing a Consortium of Health Institutions in Lifestyle Medicine in the Middle East.