Abstract
The year 2024 marks the 20th Anniversary of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM). The American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine (AJLM) is proud to serve as the official journal of ACLM and as Editor of AJLM, I am delighted to offer congratulations and also note a wonderful serendipity.
Why serendipity?
Because the year 2024 marks not only the 20th Anniversary of the founding of ACLM but also the 25th Anniversary of the publication of the first edition of the academic lifestyle medicine textbook, Lifestyle Medicine (CRC Press) that I edit. I am also proud to announce that 2024 will also mark the publication of the fourth edition of this academic textbook which spans the field of lifestyle medicine and provides its evidence-based foundation.
The history of ACLM and my Lifestyle Medicine textbook are inextricably intertwined. With the first edition of my Lifestyle Medicine textbook, I coined the term “lifestyle medicine” in the academic literature. This textbook also served as the inspiration and initial intellectual underpinnings for the founding of ACLM. In 2023, I was proud to receive the prestigious “Trail Blazer” Award from ACLM in recognition of the synergy between ACLM, my lifestyle medicine textbook, and AJLM. In my acceptance speech, I declared “ACLM is in my DNA!”
Over the past 20 years, ACLM has grown and prospered while making numerous important contributions to the world-wide growth and acceptance of lifestyle medicine. During this time, ACLM has grown from a fledgling organization of only several hundred members to an academic and educational powerhouse with over 11,000 members! This makes ACLM the most rapidly growing professional health care organization in the world!
As the proud father of 4 beautiful young daughters, I have often marveled how the age of 20 seems to mark a watershed time when the achievements and concerns of adolescence have largely abated, and children turn to face the opportunities, challenges, and responsibilities of adulthood. So, it is with ACLM. While enormous contributions have already been made over the past 20 years by ACLM and its members, great challenges and opportunities remain.
I stand in awe of the phenomenal achievements that ACLM has garnered by rising to meet the challenge of informing and inspiring efforts of people around the world to understand that daily habits and practices profoundly influence both long and short-term quality of life.
So, congratulations to ACLM, its leaders and its members on your 20th Anniversary! While the accomplishments have been great, the future offers even more profound opportunities. AJLM is proud to be ACLM’s official journal and partner. Together, we will change health care around the world!