Are the people around you supportive of your health goals? If you were to embark on a new routine, would your friends be a help or hindrance? For today’s episode, I was delighted to welcome my good friend James Maskell for a conversation around friendship, community and the concept of ‘group medicine’.James is a health entrepreneur, author and community builder. He studied health economics and it’s now his mission to curb rising healthcare costs across the globe with a model that puts people first. His latest book, The Community Cure, looks at how helping groups of people with common health concerns come together can solve the very problems they share – an idea similar to Alcoholics Anonymous. He runs virtual health coaching groups in the US, which have been successful for everything from autoimmune disease to depression, chronic pain to digestive disorders. And he believes there are few conditions that couldn’t be helped by a collective mentality. We discuss a 2006 NHS version of this concept, which famously saw patients work together to reverse their type 2 diabetes through diet. It saved one practice £70,000 a year in drug costs, which would have equated to £270 million if rolled out across the UK.But it’s not just health-focused communities that can feel the benefit of coming together in groups and James and I discuss the profound benefits of men’s groups. When people share their experience, solutions and support each other to live well, amazing things can happen. I hope this conversation encourages you to reach out, find your tribe, and see what you can do for each other. Thanks to our sponsors:https://www.athleticgreens.com/livemorehttps://www.vivobarefoot.com/livemoreOrder Dr Chatterjee's new book Happy Mind, Happy Life: UK version: https://amzn.to/304opgJ, US & Canada version: https://amzn.to/3DRxjgpShow notes available at https://drchatterjee.com/287DISCLAIMER: The content in the podcast and on this webpage is not intended to constitute or be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your doctor or qualified health care provider with any questions you have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on the podcast or on my website.

This episode is brought to you by Rupa Health, Athletic Greens, and Paleovalley. Heart disease, cancer, and stroke are the leading causes of death in the US. These diseases all have several risk factors in common, like smoking, physical inactivity, and poor diet, which policymakers often view simply as personal choices. Yet there are many reasons we need to begin looking at health beyond the individual. In today’s episode, I talk with Dan Buettner, James Maskell, Tawny Jones, and Dr. Gabor Maté about how our environment shapes our health and why community is vital to healing.Dan Buettner is an explorer, National Geographic Fellow, award-winning journalist and producer, and New York Times bestselling author. He discovered the five places in the world—dubbed Blue Zones—where people live the longest, healthiest lives. James Maskell has spent the past decade innovating at the intersection of Functional Medicine and community, where he created the Functional Forum, the world’s largest Functional Medicine conference, with record-setting participation. His organization and first book of the same name, The Evolution of Medicine, prepares health professionals for this new era of preventive medicine. Tawny Jones has been an accomplished administrator at the Cleveland Clinic for 19 years. She leads clinical operations at the Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine, sharing the efficacy of Functional Medicine and demonstrating its cost-effectiveness and ability to improve health. The Functioning for Life shared medical program for chronic disease management is her brainchild.  A renowned speaker and bestselling author, Dr. Gabor Maté is highly sought after for his expertise on a range of topics including addiction, stress, and childhood development. Dr. Maté has written several bestselling books. His latest book, The Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness, and Healing in a Toxic Culture, was just released.This episode is brought to you by Rupa Health, Athletic Greens, and Paleovalley. Rupa Health is a place where Functional Medicine practitioners can access more than 2,000 specialty lab tests from over 20 labs like DUTCH, Vibrant America, Genova, and Great Plains. You can check out a free, live demo with a Q&A or create an account at RupaHealth.com.AG1 contains 75 high-quality vitamins, minerals, whole-food sourced superfoods, probiotics, and adaptogens to support your entire body. Right now when you purchase AG1 from Athletic Greens, you will receive 10 FREE travel packs with your first purchase by visiting athleticgreens.com/hyman.Paleovalley is offering my listeners 15% off their entire first order. Just go to paleovalley.com/hyman to check out all their clean Paleo products and take advantage of this deal.Full-length episodes of these interviews can be found here:Dan BuettnerJames Maskell and Tawny JonesDr. Gabor Maté Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices