Abstract
Background. Physical activity, healthful dietary habits, and not smoking are associated with reduced cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. However, few studies have examined how counselling to improve poor lifestyle habits might be carried out in clinical practice. In Swedish primary care, structured lifestyle counselling is still not integrated into everyday clinical practice. The aim of the present study was two-fold: (1) to describe a novel lifestyle intervention programme in primary care; and (2) to evaluate change in unhealthy lifestyle habits over 1 year in men and women with high cardiovascular risk who participated in the lifestyle intervention programme.Method. A single-group study with a 1-year follow-up was carried out. A total of 417 people was enrolled, median age 62 years (54% women), with either hypertension (69%), type 2 diabetes mellitus, or impaired glucose tolerance. The 1-year intervention included five counselling sessions that focused on lifestyle habits, delivered by a district nurse with postgraduate credits in diabetes care and the metabolic syndrome. All patients were offered in-depth counselling for one or more lifestyle habits when needed. Lifestyle habits were assessed by a questionnaire at baseline and 1-year follow-up. Total change was assessed using a nine-factor unhealthy lifestyle habit index.Results. Favourable, significant changes were observed for physical activity, dietary habits, smoking, and stress over 1 year. Similar improvements were seen for both sexes and type of diagnosis.Conclusions. The results support the utility of a multifactorial, structured approach to change unhealthy lifestyle habits for cardiovascular risk prevention in a primary care setting.
Highlights
Heart attack and stroke are major killers in all parts of the world
International guidelines on cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention include lifestyle counselling to improve unhealthy lifestyle habits with the aim of reducing cardiovascular risk [2]. These guidelines emphasize that the highest clinical priority for prevention should be directed towards patients at high cardiovascular risk, such as those with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), and hypertension [3]
The main findings of this study are the significant, favourable changes in physical activity levels, dietary habits, smoking, and feelings of stress and sleeping difficulties after participation in a 1-year structured lifestyle programme in people at high cardiovascular risk provided at a primary care unit
Summary
Heart attack and stroke are major killers in all parts of the world. About 80% of premature deaths from these causes could be avoided by controlling for the main risk factors such as physical inactivity, unhealthy diet, and tobacco use [1]. International guidelines on cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention include lifestyle counselling to improve unhealthy lifestyle habits with the aim of reducing cardiovascular risk [2]. These guidelines emphasize that the highest clinical priority for prevention should be directed towards patients at high cardiovascular risk, such as those with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), and hypertension [3]. The results support the utility of a multifactorial, structured approach to change unhealthy lifestyle habits for cardiovascular risk prevention in a primary care setting
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