BBCA GP says that his 28-day plan is helping to reverse preventable health problems such as pre-diabetes and joint issues.
Dr Campbell Murdoch’s diet-focused scheme concentrates on metabolism – how well we process food.
As part of the programme, patients attend metabolic health coaching sessions every two weeks, and are encouraged to commit to long-term changes.
Dr Murdoch, from Wincanton Health Centre in Somerset, said: “You can get enthusiastic for 28 days, see the benefits, then get involved in the longer term embedding.”
He added: “Twenty-eight days is 28 days, that’s not a lifetime. If you go back to your old ways, the problems are going to return.
“The reason that I chose to focus on 28 days is it feels manageable.
“Reassuringly, people seem to say they enjoy it.”
The scheme is endorsed by the local NHS in Somerset and since it started in August 2024, about 150 patients have signed up.
It involves adjusting their diet and avoiding certain complex carbohydrates such as potatoes.
Dr Murdoch has been working with the re-insurer Swiss Re, which is trying to reduce the number of people claiming for being out of work through ill health.
Basil Duddridge, 67, from Wincanton, has lost two stone (12.7kg) since starting the course in August 2024, when he was pre-diabetic.
Six months after starting the programme, he was delighted to be told insulin levels in his blood were normal.
He was shown a graph that showed how much his metabolic health had improved.
Mr Duddridge said: “I can’t believe it, it is amazing. Before I see the results, numbers don’t mean a lot to me but seeing the graph I can’t believe it really.”
Patients with a high BMI (body mass index) and signs of inflammatory disease are referred to a metabolic health peer support group that holds sessions every two weeks in the surgery, which is run by Symphony Healthcare Services.
The role of health coaches as part of the wider GP practice team is also important in helping patients to improve their metabolism.
One coach, Megan Perrin, said good metabolic health “can help prevent modern diseases like type-2 diabetes and high blood pressure”.
Many of the common problems that bring patients to GPs include aches and pains, feeling fed up, joint problems, skin problems and excess belly fat. All of these could be linked to poor metabolic health.
‘Awareness and education’
Dr Murdoch said he believed that “10-minute interactions” with his practice’s health coaches “can change the whole trajectory” of patients’ lives.
He said metabolic health was the “engine for life”, guiding how the body stores energy and releases it, while keeping itself in a state of balance.
“Metabolic health is very closely linked to what we choose to eat and how we move, as well as sleep and stress levels,” he said.
“I find that poor metabolic health is an underlying cause in about half the patients I see in a single day, but there’s no reason they’d know this, so raising awareness and education is really important.”
Dr Murdoch added he was interested in setting up a metabolic health hub in Somerset in the future.
