Personalized Lifestyle Medicine
Dr. Michael Breen offers Personalized Programs for those who want to optimize their health, or for those who are dealing with chronic health issues.
The foundational premise of Personalized Lifestyle Medicine (PLM) is that every person and every circumstance is unique. Western Medicine tends to lump people with conditions into categories who are then treated by established protocols (primarily pharmaceuticals). Some would suggest that this is a “one-size fits all” kind of approach. PLM recognizes that the patients’ individual circumstances are critical components in their condition. These components may include:
- Social
- Financial
- General stress
- Physical health
- Emotional health
- Other factors
On top of this, PLM also recognizes that there are no two people who are identical – and this speaks to genetic responses as well as unique physiological functions.
One of the hallmarks of an effective PLM approach is the regular interaction between doctor and patient. An initial interaction or consultation will identify the nature of the problem, and then delve into the unique circumstances of the patient. A customized plan will often be suggested. The important next step is the follow-up on that plan:
- Is it working?
- Is it not?
- What can be modified?
- How compliant is the patient with the plan?
- If not, why not?
Then, changes may or may not be made to the plan, based upon the individual response.
It is important to state that a PLM approach does not implicitly mean the removal of pharmaceuticals. In fact, in many cases, the patients' personalized plan would include the continuation of previously existing drugs, but with modifications of other elements, such as diet, supplementation, or exercise.
Personalized Lifestyle Medicine is the health care of the future. This is because the most recent advances in science, particularly in the understanding of individually unique elements such as the microbiome, inflammatory responses, and how our physiology interacts with our genetic makeup, have forced us to see each person as exceptionally distinct.
Optimized Health requires Optimized Health Care – a PLM approach is how this is achieved.