Do you ever ask your patients routine questions that you run out of time to address properly?
I do. 🙋♀️
On my intake form, I always ask about exercise. And while I look at the answer, I don’t always talk about it with my patients.
But a new prospective study out of Spain reminded me just how powerful the combination of exercise + diet can be for managing IBD.
Researchers followed nearly 700 adults with inactive Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis for about two years.
They looked at how adherence to a Mediterranean-style diet (PREDIMED score ≥9) and regular physical activity (GODIN-Leisure score ≥24)—separately and together—impacted disease course.
Here’s what your patients may care about…
Following a healthy diet plus regular physical activity may:
✔ Lower inflammation (more than diet or exercise alone)
✔ Reduce the need for steroids
✔ Reduce muscle loss
✔ Reduce the severity of flares (more so in UC than Crohn’s)
✔ Reduce the risk of developing metabolic comorbidities, such as MASLD (more common in the IBD population)
I’ve always emphasized lifestyle—often saying something like,
“Even if I could just look at you and tell you exactly what to eat, if you’re not sleeping, moving, or managing stress, it won’t work as well.”
Now, I have specific talking points I can share with patients who say, “I know I should exercise, but…”
Maybe these will come in handy for you, too—so you don’t gloss over this key piece of the puzzle (like I’ve been known to do 😉).
By the way, if your patient can’t commit to both exercise and dietary changes, this study showed that even one alone—either regular movement or healthy eating—still offered meaningful benefits.
