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In the US, chronic disease is one of the main causes of health problems and the largest cause for health expenses. In fact, many of the most significant causes of death in the US, such as heart disease, diabetes, some respiratory diseases, and stroke are largely preventable. These diseases are caused by poor choices people make such as intake of unhealthy food, inactivity, excessive alcohol consumption, and smoking, refusal of vaccines, and many others. Motivating people to take an interest in their health and improve their lifestyle by making better decisions would result in both a healthier and happier population in addition to reducing the enormous amounts of money lost to preventable health problems.

However, convincing people to change their behavior is difficult

Unfortunately, improving health behavior is much easier said than done. First of all, the need to improve behavior must be communicated to those who could benefit most. This alone is not enough; many people are aware that their lifestyles may be unhealthy yet continue to make poor choices. In order to enact real change, people must be truly motivated to improve their lifestyles. They must also be guided in the steps that they can take to improve, so that they can realize that a healthy lifestyle is an attainable goal.

Patients can influence others to change their behavior

Patients who have experienced these health issues contain a wealth of information that can be used to influence the behavior of others. Stories of real patients' experiences can serve as both motivational sources and cautionary tales for others. Hearing from someone who lives a similar lifestyle as you eventually became afflicted with a serious condition is a major incentive to modify your behavior. At the same time, there is nothing more inspiring than hearing the story of someone from a similar situation as yourself who managed to renounce their bad choices and dramatically improve their life.

This idea is well supported by previous research

The idea that people are more likely to change their lifestyle based on the results and consequences of the actions of others has been well established in the field of behavioral health and psychology. Studies have shown that the specific chemicals released in the human body when listening to or watching someone's personal story provoke a much more enthralling and inspiring experience than other types of stories or informational content. Social Cognitive Theory(SCT) is the psychological theory related to this idea that asserts the importance of people's observations of those around them in their learning, and there are numerous additional studies supporting the idea.