ABSTRACT
In 2006 the then prime minister, Tony Blair, expressed the view that ‘lifestyle diseases’ were one of the major challenges facing the National Health Service (NHS). During Tony Blair’s time as prime minister considerable attention was given to these diseases, whether this be within academia, social policy or the media. Prior to this high level nudge, we had already recognised the importance of psychology in the development of the so-called lifestyle diseases and were discussing the development of a ‘Lifestyle Psychology’ degree. Further research and discussion with colleagues led us to believe that there was a market for a book on lifestyle psychology and we began a dialogue with the publisher from which this text has resulted.
