Lifestyle Change in Family Medicine: Recap of a Merck Professional Meeting
The role of lifestyle medicine in family medicine
Lifestyle medicine in family practice can be an important part of managing chronic noncommunicable disease. This was one of the central themes of a recent Merck professional meeting held at Plitvice Lakes on 17 and 18 April 2026 for family physicians, marking 30 years of Merck's presence in Croatia.
The programme covered the management of chronic noncommunicable diseases in cardiology, diabetes and thyroid disease. Lectures, panel discussions and debates focused on practical treatment situations relevant to family medicine.
One of the topics was lifestyle change in family medicine. Lifestyle change is a first-line recommendation in many guidelines for chronic noncommunicable disease. Many of these conditions are associated with modifiable risk factors and everyday habits. Combining appropriate medical treatment with support for healthier behaviours is therefore an important part of care. It was useful to see this included in a professional meeting focused on chronic disease.
Mediterranean nutrition and physical activity in chronic disease care
I was honoured to be invited to speak to around 50 family physicians on the topic “Family physicians as leaders towards healthier living”, followed by a group walking route in the surrounding nature. In the talk, I focused on two topics in more detail: the Mediterranean dietary pattern as a widely recommended model of healthy eating, and the type and amount of physical activity recommended by the World Health Organization for health protection.
I also used the opportunity to remind colleagues that lifestyle deserves a place in routine consultations, even if that initially means asking patients how they eat, how much they move and similar questions. Simply asking can signal that these behaviours matter for health. For colleagues who want to explore the topic further, I introduced our Croatian Lifestyle Medicine Association as a place where they can find more information about education and, for those interested, certification in lifestyle medicine.
I also shared a practical tool presented to us by lifestyle medicine-certified psychologist and behaviour change specialist Simon Matthews at the 2nd Croatian Lifestyle Medicine Congress in Split: a brief intervention questionnaire designed for a short, approximately five-minute conversation that focuses attention on lifestyle and helps patients identify actions they can take themselves to improve health.
It is a targeted sequence of eight questions intended to strengthen a patient's own existing intentions towards healthier living rather than impose change from outside. It also supports a continuous and regular dialogue between physician and patient and encourages the patient's own responsibility for health. |
It was a very enjoyable weekend and an interesting example of a pharmaceutical industry-sponsored professional meeting making space for lifestyle medicine.
Participants responded positively to the inclusion of lifestyle medicine in a meeting devoted to chronic noncommunicable disease. I hope this becomes more common in continuing education for family physicians.
If you would like to hear more about the psychology of health behaviour change, watch Simon Matthews' lecture.
