ABSTRACT
This part introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters. The part presents a brief history and evolution of “health promotion” which blends public health, “wellness and well-being,” clinical preventive medicine, medical care, and lifestyle medicine into a more comprehensive and effective model. It discusses much of the disconnect and potential solutions for closing the gap between traditional patient care and a lifestyle medicine approach to care to prevent, treat, and reverse many common chronic conditions. The part presents the future role of physicians in health promotion strategies and wellness tools. It also discusses the evolving definition of health and how health promotion strategies and tools will persist or change over time. The part explains how lifestyle medicine is impacted by other determinates of health, including the environment and culture, and the impact of new knowledge.
