American College of Lifestyle Medicine and American Osteopathic Information Association announce strategic partnership to address root causes of chronic disease

The organizations will collaborate to improve patient care by increasing evidence-based lifestyle medicine education and training among osteopathic physicians.

CHICAGO, July 9, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM) and the American Osteopathic Information Association (AOiA) have announced a strategic partnership to improve patient care by expanding access to evidence-based lifestyle medicine through increased education and training for osteopathic physicians.

The partnership brings together two mission-driven organizations with a shared commitment to transforming health care by preparing physicians and health professionals to address the root causes of chronic disease—not just manage its symptoms. ACLM, the nation's leader in lifestyle medicine education, has delivered over 1.2 million hours of lifestyle medicine training since 2004. AOiA, a driving force for innovation and transformation within the osteopathic community, enhances patient care through practice management support and forward-thinking digital health strategies.

"Together, the American College of Lifestyle Medicine and the American Osteopathic Information Association are taking a pivotal step toward transforming our health care system from one that simply manages chronic disease to one that treats, reverses and prevents chronic disease," said ACLM President Padmaja Patel, MD, DipABLM, FACLM, CPE. "By equipping physicians with the evidence-based lifestyle medicine knowledge and skills they were not provided in medical school, we can enhance patient outcomes and advance away from our model of 'sick care' to a more effective, sustainable and whole-person model of 'health' care."

The U.S. trajectory of chronic disease is unsustainable, with an estimated 129 million individuals suffering from at least one chronic disease and incurring billions of dollars in associated health care spending. Lifestyle medicine uses therapeutic lifestyle interventions as a primary modality to treat chronic conditions by applying the six pillars of lifestyle medicine—optimal nutrition, physical activity, restorative sleep, stress management, connectedness, and avoidance of risky substances. Since certification started in 2017, more than 8,000 clinicians worldwide have earned certification in lifestyle medicine.

Osteopathic physicians are trained to practice medicine with a whole-person, patient-centered approach that considers how lifestyle and environment impact health. Osteopathic medicine, like lifestyle medicine, is a fast-growing field. The number of osteopathic physicians in the U.S. has grown 70% in the past 10 years and nearly 40,000 future physicians currently attend osteopathic medical schools.

"This strategic partnership between the American College of Lifestyle Medicine and the American Osteopathic Information Association represents a powerful alignment of our shared commitment to whole-person health care," said Chair of AOiA Board of Directors Norman E. Vinn, DO, MBA. "As AOA's innovation arm and incubator for forward-thinking solutions, AOiA is uniquely positioned to help integrate lifestyle medicine education and training throughout the osteopathic community. With osteopathic medicine's focus on the body as a unit and lifestyle medicine's emphasis on addressing root causes through evidence-based interventions, this collaboration creates a natural synergy that will enhance patient outcomes while advancing our profession's core principles of prevention and holistic care."

As part of the launch of the strategic partnership, a series of co-facilitated webinars will be offered to AOA and ACLM members. These sessions will provide a deep dive into how the six pillars of lifestyle medicine align with the principles of osteopathic medicine:

• Digital Lifestyle Medicine & Nutrition: Transforming Health Through Technology and Osteopathic Principles 4:30-5:30 pm CT, Monday, Oct. 27.
• Mind, Muscle, Medicine: A Unified Approach to Exercise as Therapy 4:30-5:30 p.m. CT, Monday, Dec. 8.

"By bringing together ACLM's expertise in lifestyle medicine education with AOiA's role as a catalyst for health care transformation within the osteopathic community, we're creating powerful new pathways to address chronic disease at its source," said AOiA Executive Director Christel Ballog, MA, CAE, FHIMSS. "As the innovation and strategic implementation partner of the American Osteopathic Association, AOiA is committed to developing and delivering forward-thinking solutions that enhance osteopathic practice. This partnership will equip DOs with additional evidence-based tools to provide truly comprehensive care that aligns perfectly with osteopathic medicine's whole-person philosophy."

Supporting quotes from osteopathic physicians

"For over a decade, I have worked at the crossroads of lifestyle medicine and digital health, and this partnership between the American College of Lifestyle Medicine and the American Osteopathic Information Association marks a profound leap forward in medicine and health care delivery. No longer will patients be left adrift with vague advice — they will have clear goals, real-time feedback, and continuous support to build sustainable habits. This is our opportunity to reinforce the ability to move beyond managing disease, and to become true architects of health — blending data, technology, and human connection to create care protocols that are enjoyable, personalized, proactive and truly transformative."
— Regan A. Stiegmann DO, MPH, DipABLM, FACLM, director of the Digital Health Track at Rocky Vista University

"Integration of osteopathic and lifestyle medicine modalities is seamless as both focus on the patient as a whole. Osteopathic medicine focuses on the body as a unit with structure and function being integrally related. Lifestyle medicine also focuses on the effects of nutrition, sleep, stress, social relationships, and movement. Application of both osteopathic and lifestyle medicine principles enables us to use all of our 'tools in the toolkit' to not only optimize our patients' health journey, but also build lasting relationships through meaningful connection."
— Christina Lucas-Vougiouklakis, DO, DipABLM, FACLM, director of Osteopathic and Lifestyle Medicine Education for Promedica's Family Medicine Residency Program in Monroe, Mich.

About ACLM®
The American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM) is the nation's medical professional society advancing the field of lifestyle medicine as the foundation of a redesigned, value-based and equitable healthcare delivery system, essential to achieving the Quintuple Aim and whole-person health. ACLM represents, advocates for, trains, certifies, and equips its members to identify and eradicate the root cause of chronic disease by optimizing modifiable risk factors. ACLM is filling the gaping void of lifestyle medicine in medical education, providing more than 1.2 million hours of lifestyle medicine education to physicians and other health professionals, since 2004, while also advancing research, clinical practice and reimbursement strategies.

About AOiA
The American Osteopathic Information Association (AOiA) is a not-for-profit trade association formed in 2000 to support the osteopathic profession through advocacy, member-focused resources, strategic partnerships, and innovative data-driven health solutions. AOiA offers curated programs to meet physicians' professional and lifestyle needs, making their lives easier and creating space for health care transformation and innovation in the osteopathic community. For more information about AOiA and Digital Health Innovation, please visit, www.aoiassn.org. 

SOURCE American Osteopathic Association