The Art of Lifestyle Medicine

TED talk by Howard Napper

It seems to be widely assumed that our adult lives are governed by the depressing fact that physical degeneration inevitably kicks in somewhere around our early 30’s, and then inexorably continues until our demise somewhere later in life. So you might be pleasantly surprised to discover that reality is very different: in fact our biology is governed by an innate process of healing and regeneration that allows many of our cells to renew themselves on a regular basis. And in return the only requirement is that we make choices in our life that give our bodies the right tools in order to do its job.

Of course this is great news – mainly because this means that the choices we make for ourselves today can not only affect things like energy and mood tomorrow, but also in the long run, the right lifestyle choices have the ability to dramatically improve our overall health and even extend how long we have to live.

So naturally the question becomes, “Ok – then what do I have to do to sign up for more energy, better health and a longer life, and is it going to hurt?”

In order to make the kind of changes we’re talking about, we are going to have to reconsider some of the choices we‘re already making - but that doesn’t mean it has to be painful. And yes we all know about exercising more, eating better and getting more sleep, but much of what is now being called “lifestyle medicine” goes way beyond this basic advice, which can so often be more confusing than helpful.

In his talk, lifestyle practitioner Howard Napper explores the fascinating notion that the human body is less a permanent structure and more a regenerating organism that exists in a constant state of flux, where old cells are constantly being replaced by new cells. And how our lifestyle, and the moment-to-moment choices we make can affect this biological remodeling for better or worse.