Lifestyle diseases are associated with the way a person lives their life. These can include diabetes, heart disease and obesity which are illnesses influenced by dietary choices and social activities, such as smoking and drinking. These diseases are chronic illnesses as they develop over a long period of time, and are caused by choices made consistently during that period. For example, choices that are made in our 20s can have a negative impact on our health, but the extent of this might not be felt for another 10-30 years.

How to overcome the diseases

To avoid these diseases later in life, and to ensure that they don’t develop over time, we need to make conscious healthier choices now to reap the long-term benefits. It’s important to accept where we are in life now, to understand the lifestyle choices you’re making and how they’re impacting your health today and in the future. It’s really key to be clear about your current health, such as weight and the effect of your lifestyle choices on your health over the next 10-20 years. For example, eating a takeaway once a week might not negatively impact your health dramatically in the short term, but by consistently eating a take away every week for the next 10 years, you will be increasing your chances of weight and fat gain, which could lead to obesity, heart disease and diabetes.

To prevent the onset of lifestyle diseases it’s important that you build a realistic plan that’s flexible and beneficial to your lifestyle. A lot of these diseases are caused by societal choices including the friendship group you are part of and the way you choose to spend your time as a group, such as regular nights spent together drinking in the pub. These choices are not quick to change, as it often impacts more than just the food on your plate, such as your friendship and how you choose to spend your free time.

The good news

Whatever age you are in life, our bodies have a miraculous ability of being able to turn around whatever challenges it’s facing and whilst you can’t always fully reverse the result of lifestyle choices over a long period of time, you can greatly affect the long-term impact of your decisions. For more information about lifestyle diseases and information about what you can do to deal with them, watch our video.