WLT focuses on young adults, early (18–25), middle (26–32), and late (33–39).WLT assumes that if young adults intentionally adopt, maintain, and continue a healthy lifestyle in the early years of life, they increase their likelihood of preventing non-communicable diseases, including cardiovascular diseases, cancer, and diabetes in the later years of life, thereby improving their health, well-being, and quality of life.
According to Budreviciute A, Damiati S, et al. (2020), non-communicable diseases (NCDs), also known as chronic diseases, are medical conditions characterized by long duration and slow progression. Most NCDs are non-infectious and result from genetic, physiological, behavioral, and environmental factors. ” Chronic diseases are defined broadly as conditions that last 1 year or more and require ongoing medical attention, limit activities of daily living, or both.”
According to the World Health Organization (WHO: Key facts 2025), “Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) killed at least 43 million people in 2021, equivalent to 75% of non-pandemic-related deaths globally. In 2021, 18 million people died from an NCD before age 70 years; 82% of these premature deaths occurred in low- and middle-income countries. Cardiovascular diseases account for most NCD deaths, or at least 19 million deaths in 2021, followed by cancers (10 million), chronic respiratory diseases (4 million), and diabetes (over 2 million, including kidney disease deaths caused by diabetes). These four groups of diseases account for 80% of all premature NCD deaths.
“Three in four American adults have at least one chronic condition, and over half have two or more chronic conditions. Among younger adults ages 18–34, 60% have at least one condition. Among midlife adults ages 35–64, more than 75% have at least one condition…Chronic diseases like cancer, heart disease, and diabetes are the leading causes of death and disability in the United States.” (cdc.gov/chronic diseases)
The main types of NCDs are cardiovascular diseases (such as heart attacks and stroke), cancers, chronic respiratory diseases (such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma), and diabetes. (WHO: NCDs,2025)
“Diabetes is a chronic disease (long-lasting) that affects how your body turns food into energy. Your body breaks down most of the food you eat into sugar (glucose) and releases it into your bloodstream. When your blood sugar goes up, it signals your pancreas to release insulin. Insulin acts like a key, allowing blood sugar to enter your body’s cells for use as energy. With diabetes, your body doesn’t make enough insulin or can’t use it as well as it should. When there isn’t enough insulin or cells stop responding to insulin, too much blood sugar stays in your bloodstream.”Eventually, this can lead to major health issues such as heart disease, vision impairment, and kidney problems.
Three main types of diabetes are identified, including type 1, type 2, and gestational diabetes, which takes place during pregnancy.
“With type 1 diabetes, your pancreas doesn’t make insulin or makes very little insulin.” This is because your immune system produces antibodies that attack the beta cells in your pancreas that make insulin. This action stops your pancreatic beta cells from making insulin. People with type 1 diabetes will need to take insulin every day to survive. There is no preventive intervention for people with type 1 diabetes. “Type 1 diabetes is usually diagnosed in children and young adults, but can be diagnosed at any age.”
According to cdc.gov/diabetes (2024), more than 40 million Americans have diabetes (about 1 in 8), and about 90% to 95% of them have type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes most often develops in people 45 or older, but more children, teens, and young adults are also developing it. Type 2 diabetes can be prevented or delayed with lifestyle changes.”
In a healthy individual, the food you eat is broken down into sugar, causing your blood sugar levels to rise. An increase in your blood sugar levels stimulates the release of a hormone called insulin from an internal organ known as the pancreas. Insulin binds to receptors on cell walls in your body, such as fat, muscle, and liver cells, to allow glucose to enter the cells. Cells use glucose for immediate energy or store it as glycogen in the liver and muscles for future use. As glucose moves into cells, the blood sugar level returns to a normal, healthy range. In type 2 diabetes, the cells in your muscles, fat, and liver stop responding to insulin, preventing it from moving sugar into them (insulin resistance). Sugar begins to build up in the bloodstream. Initially, the pancreas produces extra insulin to force glucose into the cells. Over time, the pancreatic beta cells become exhausted, resulting in insufficient insulin production. Because cells cannot absorb glucose, it builds up in the bloodstream, causing high blood glucose levels and setting the stage for type 2 diabetes. High blood sugar is damaging to the body. It can cause other serious health problems, including heart disease, vision impairment, and kidney disease.
Prevention refers to measures taken to stop adverse health events from developing or to detect them early, preventing their progression. There are four known levels of prevention: primordial, primary, secondary, and tertiary. WLT focuses more on primordial and primary prevention. Primordial prevention is the set of measures taken to stop risk factors for adverse health events from developing in a healthy individual. It focuses on social, economic, and environmental determinants of health. Primordial prevention addresses the root causes of disease. Primary prevention is the set of measures taken to prevent the onset of disease in a healthy individual. Primary prevention focuses on reducing risk and increasing resistance. It emphasizes health education and smoking cessation among young adults. Secondary prevention focuses on early detection and treatment of preclinical diseases. It aims to halt or slow disease progression. Tertiary prevention reduces complications and disability after disease onset. It focuses on improving the quality of life and preventing further deterioration.
As stated before, “Among younger adults ages 18–34, 60% have at least one condition, and among midlife adults ages 35–64, more than 75% have at least one condition.” WLT provides young adults with opportunities to intentionally adopt and maintain a healthy lifestyle that prevents the development of risk factors for adverse health events. It also prevents disease in healthy individuals.
We define a healthy lifestyle as a way of living that individuals intentionally adopt, maintain, and practice daily to prevent and control disease, improve their physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual well-being, and enhance their quality of life.
Adopting, maintaining, and continually making healthy choices for a healthy lifestyle requires behavioral change. According to the Institute of Medicine (IOM,2001), “Behavior can be changed, and those changes can influence health. However, “Initiating and maintaining behavior change is complex and difficult” (Pellmar, Brandt, and Baird, 2002). According to DiClemente et al (2019), “Before behaviors can change, the determinant(s) of behavior, the nature of the behavior, and motivation for the behavior must be understood.” There are several behaviors change theories and models that can be applied at multiple levels of influence on human behavior, using a socioecological approach: which states that “human behavior shapes and is shaped by multiple levels of influences.” Such levels of influence include intrapersonal (individual), interpersonal (family, friends, peer groups), organizational, community, and public policy.
WLT provides the fundamental truth, rooted in God’s word, for behavior change that promises benefits in this life and in the life to come. This truth brings profound change to individuals’ hearts and minds, transforming their character, behavior, attitudes, beliefs, and knowledge, enabling them to intentionally adopt, maintain, and continually make healthy daily choices. When individuals adopt a healthy lifestyle, they serve as a model for other family members, including children, and for the broader community. Many diseases, injuries, disabilities, and premature deaths from heart diseases, strokes, cancers, and diabetes can be prevented or reduced with behavior change.
A healthy lifestyle includes the following:
Each component of the healthy lifestyle has already been discussed on this website.
Follow us on our website, blog, and social media, and at conferences, seminars, workshops, community forums, and community fellowships, as we tailor healthy lifestyles to prevent the onset of diabetes in healthy individuals.