Primary Care at the Intersection of Lifestyle Interventions and Unhealthy Substance Use

Lindsay Nakaishi; Steven G Sugden; Gia Merlo

doi:10.1177/15598276221111047

Primary Care at the Intersection of Lifestyle Interventions and Unhealthy Substance Use

Am J Lifestyle Med. 2022 Jun 27;17(4):494-501. doi: 10.1177/15598276221111047. eCollection 2023 Jul-Aug.

Authors

Lindsay Nakaishi¹, Steven G Sugden¹, Gia Merlo¹

Affiliation

¹ Family Medicine, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center St. Margaret, Pittsburgh, PA, USA (LN); Huntsman Mental Health Institute, Spencer Fox Eccles University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT, USA (SS); and Psychiatry, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, Rory Meyers College of Nursing, New York University, New York, NY, USA (GM).

Abstract

Primary care physicians are well-positioned to integrate lifestyle interventions into the management of patients with unhealthy substance use, who may also have mental and physical chronic health comorbidities. However, the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the U.S.'s poor state of health, revealing that its current approach to chronic disease management is neither effective nor sustainable. Today's full spectrum comprehensive care model requires an expanded toolkit. Lifestyle interventions broaden current treatment approaches and may enhance Addiction Medicine care. Primary care providers have the potential to have the greatest impact on unhealthy substance use care because they are experts in chronic disease management and their frontline accessibility minimizes healthcare barriers. Individuals with unhealthy substance use are at an increased risk of chronic physical conditions. Incorporating lifestyle interventions with unhealthy substance use care at every level of medicine, from medical school through practice, normalizes both as part of the standard care of medicine and will drive evidence-based best practices to support patients through prevention, treatment, and reversal of chronic diseases.

Keywords: addiction medicine; addiction psychiatry; lifestyle interventions; medical education; medical training; primary care; substance use disorders.