It runs in the family. Here’s how your loved ones keep your health on track

Your family plays an important role in managing chronic illness and can help you stay on track with dietary changes and fitness routines, says a new study.

Staying with family not only provides affection and emotional support, but also plays an important role in managing chronic illnesses, suggests a recent study. According to researchers, a family approach may produce more effective, long-term benefits for the patient.

Study author Lynn Martire from Penn State said that family intervention approaches — such as working together to make dietary changes — can be an effective strategy for improving chronic illness management. “For some family groups, setting goals together for making lifestyle changes such as healthier eating habits and regular exercise, helps patients to stay on track and may benefit family members as well,” she said.

Martire said that this approach could have positive implications on healthcare costs as well as the treatment of patients. “Self-management of chronic illness can reduce these healthcare costs, and close family members such as a parent or the spouse play an important role in helping patients to manage their illness,” Martire noted.

According to the authors, patients and family members can work together to monitor patients’ illness symptoms, keep medical appointments and help the patient stick to medication regimens as a strategy for chronic illness management. The use of technology to maintain behaviour change may also be a promising approach, the authors suggested. Some treatment programmes require frequent travel on the part of patients and families, which limits their accessibility.

The research appears in journal of Current Directions in Psychological Science.

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