Healthy habits

HOW LONG

CAN WE LIVE?

A personal coach for everyone?

‘We are living longer than ever, but we are chronically ill for much longer too,’ says Andrea Evers, Professor of Health Psychology at Leiden University. ‘This is especially the case for people from vulnerable groups, like people with a low level of education. On average, they live nineteen years shorter in good health because, for example, they have less access to healthy food and a green environment that encourages them to go outside and exercise. The major increase in chronic diseases such as diabetes or cardiovascular disease in Western countries is mainly due to a specific lifestyle. Some people think it is easy to make a lifestyle change, but it is actually very complicated. Evolutionarily speaking, we tend to put everything in our mouths that is fatty and sweet. Especially when stressed, our willpower fails us, and we open our refrigerator anyway. If the fridge contains only healthy food, we obviously can’t grab something unhealthy. But people who are under a lot of stress – perhaps because they are in debt or ill – often have better things to do than change the contents of their refrigerator. In addition, some days you will be more successful in maintaining a certain lifestyle than others. Many people let this get them down and then tend to stop making changes to their lifestyle. That is why we need to approach behavioural change in a positive way. Rewards can help; think of a free gym membership for someone who keeps eating healthy. But some are more sensitive to such rewards than others. My research group and I have developed an online lifestyle program for people with cardiovascular disease. It can help encourage people to change their behaviour at home in an easy way. However, a digital approach is not suitable for everyone. Vulnerable groups often respond better to a local approach, such as a neighbourhood coach to walk with. Actually, everyone should have a personal coach like that. They can help to find out which approach works better for someone, including by examining whether they had specific healthy habits in the past. Re-introducing old healthy habits is a lot easier than teaching someone something they have never done before.’ Text: Marleen Hoebe