Lifestyle Medicine

The USC School of Medicine Greenville is the first U.S. medical school to fully incorporate education in nutrition, physical activity, behavior change and self-care into all four years of the medical school curriculum.

Mission: LMEd provides open access, evidence-based Lifestyle Medicine curricular resources to build knowledge, skills and advocacy in clinicians for the prevention and treatment of lifestyle-related chronic disease.

Vision: All clinical students will receive education in lifestyle medicine to prevent and treat lifestyle-related chronic disease.

The 6 Pillars of Lifestyle Medicine

Healthy Eating

Whole, plant-forward food pattern

High fiber, low refined sugar

Nutrient-dense, disease-fighting
Physical Activity

Consistent, daily PA

150 minutes moderately-intense aerobic

3+ days of muscle strength training
Managing Stress

Recognizing external stressors

Improving resiliency and coping

Mindfulness, increasing social support
Healthy Relationships

Increasing social connectedness

Reducing isolation
Quality Sleep

7-9 hours per night

Improving sleep environment

Reducing screen time before sleep
Avoiding Harmful Substance Use

Tobacco and Vaping

Too much alcohol

(males: 2 drinks/day; females: 1 drink/day)

A Healthy Curriculum

Improving South Carolinians’ health requires care providers who are skilled in counseling patients about preventing costly and debilitating chronic diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer.

Building healthy habits starts with you, day one of your M1 year. Throughout your four years of medical training, lifestyle medicine will be promoted and integrated into your classroom learning and medical school experiences. The curriculum covers topics such as eating healthy, exercising, managing stress, building healthy relationships, developing quality sleep habits and avoiding substance abuse.

You’ll learn to take care of yourself as you persevere through school, then pass along your first-hand knowledge to future patients to strengthen individual, family and community health.

The School of Medicine Greenville’s lifestyle medicine curriculum now serves as an international model to advance medical school education and patient outcomes.

If we don't train our future doctors on how to work with patients to prevent these diseases, not only the health care costs of our nation — but the morbidity and mortality related to these chronic diseases — will continue to skyrocket.

Dr. Jennifer Trilk, professor, founder, and director of Lifestyle Medicine Programs

Program Highlights

Nation’s first lifestyle medicine-certified medical school dean appointed at University of South Carolina School of Medicine Greenville
SOMG takes part in historic federal effort towards healthier communities
2019 U.S. President’s Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition Community Leadership Award
2019 Global Leadership Award from the American College of Sports Medicine

A Healthy Partnership

The innovative lifestyle medicine curriculum at the USC School of Medicine Greenville is designed to help you educate patients about chronic disease prevention and management through a classroom-clinic-community model to build strong doctor-patient relationships.

YMCA of Greenville and Oconee Counties: The mission of our award-winning program, Exercise is Medicine Greenville, is to provide an evidence-based, community program committed to compassionately improving the health and well-being of South Carolina Upstate residents through providing physical activity and lifestyle changes where people live, work, and play, regardless of their ability to pay.

Greenville Technical College Truist Culinary and Hospitality Innovation is an incredible partner in helping us train the next generation of doctor to be skilled in nutrition counseling and chronic disease prevention and treatment using Food is Medicine. This bi-partisan initiative aligns with the new state and federal efforts to improve nutrition competencies in doctors through training them in food ingredient awareness, patient counseling, cost-effectiveness, and preparing culturally-competent and patient-centered healthy foods that improve nutrient density and reduce sodium, processed ingredients, added sugars, saturated fats and cholesterol.

A Healthy Practice

Counseling patients about wellness starts with gaining first-hand experience with lifestyle medicine strategies. As a student at the USC School of Medicine Greenville, you will embrace lifestyle medicine through various activities.

Gardening

Learn about healthy foods from the ground up — literally! Plant fruits and vegetables in the community garden with your classmates, then learn how to prepare healthy meals.
Cooking

Power your studies with healthy, nutrient-dense foods. Learn healthy cooking techniques in hands-on workshops taught by professional chefs.
Biking

Ride into a healthy lifestyle. See how exercise benefits your body physically and mentally.

Like what you see? Apply now.

Applying to medical school is a big decision and we can help you navigate the Admissions process. Learn how to apply.

School of Medicine Greenville