L’ANSE, Mich. (WBUP/WJMN) — Staff at the Baraga County Memorial Hospital (BCMH) know changing your lifestyle takes a lot of hard work, dedication and support from others. Recently, they’ve been helping the community begin their health journey in a lifestyle medicine event series.
“The behaviors that people do day in and day out include what they eat, how they move, how they sleep and how they manage stress,” said BCMH Doctor Evan Loukusa. “We know that those things are the most important pieces of what’s gonna determine how people do in the future, their function, their quality of life, their chance of disease.”
While treatment for diseases are typically thought of as drugs or surgeries, Loukusa said lifestyle medicine is important to treating pre-existing diseases such as type 2 diabetes.
Loukusa, along with Physician’s Assistant Maureen Bodenbach said that recent medical studies show lifestyle plays an important role in helping prevent diseases like high cholesterol, diabetes and heart disease.
Bodenbach also emphasized that changing your lifestyle becomes much easier with people to journey with.
People who access support, especially access peer support, do far better. They have better outcomes, they stick with it longer and they’re less likely to regain the weight if they have that strong social support and accountability,” Bodenbach said.
Today, Tuesday, Feb. 11, BCMH will hold a talk about the science behind cravings and the reason behind the sudden snacking sensation.
“Leptin is the hormone that tells the brain that you’re full but through various mechanisms, leptin resistance, especially from ultra-processed, a lot of ultra-processed foods over many years, the brain stops receiving the signals from leptin that you’re full,” Bodenbach explained. “And so what people often find is that no matter how much they eat, they never feel full. It leads to the brain to believe you’re starving. And so even though people are gaining weight because they’re eating these high-calorie dense foods, their brain still acts as if it’s not eating.”
The presentation will begin at 3 p.m. inside the BCMH conference center. The Baraga County Memorial Hospital is located at 18341 on US-41 in L’Anse. Those interested in learning more about series can find details here.
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