Healthy lifestyles, including regular exercise, a healthy diet and abstaining from smoking, are one of the most effective methods for improving health and reducing risk factors for non-communicable diseases. They can also reduce the likelihood of developing serious illnesses and extend life expectancy. Despite their importance, there is still a lack of consensus on how to define and describe these lifestyles. The objective of this article is to propose a definition for a healthy lifestyle that may serve as an explanatory model and guide future research on the subject.
In the social sciences, lifestyle is a concept used to analyse and describe patterns of behaviour that determine consumption and other social aspects such as the identification with a particular group or the level of prestige achieved in a given social class. Among the first sociological theories that analysed lifestyle, Thorstein Veblen highlighted specific schemes of conspicuous consumption, which were the result of the desire to differentiate themselves from social strata that they identified as inferior and of the desire to emulate those they considered superior.
More recently, the perspective on lifestyle has shifted to analyse the daily life of individuals. In this sense, the authors such as Joffre Dumazedier and Anthony Giddens devoted particular attention to the concept of loisirs (leisure activities) and to studying their impact on the social structure.
The current use of lifestyle in the field of psychology and healthcare is due to the recognition that it is an important factor influencing personal, social and physical well-being. In fact, it is a major factor in the development of non-communicable diseases such as cardiovascular disease and cancer, which account for more than one-third of all deaths in high-income countries. These diseases are usually associated with unhealthy lifestyles, such as a high-fat diet and lack of exercise.
Nevertheless, the existing theories of lifestyle do not adequately address the definitions and interpretations of these concepts. Consequently, there is a need for a new theoretical-explanatory framework that will allow researchers to develop more effective lifestyle intervention strategies.
A lifestyle is a pattern of behavioural choices and attitudes that enables an individual to live a life in line with their values and preferences, taking into account their socioeconomic context. These choices are shaped by the cultural and environmental factors that influence individual perceptions of what is valuable and desirable.
This narrative review presents the main models and theories of the definition of a lifestyle in the psychological and sociological literature, analysing them from an internal, external, and temporal dimension. The results show that these models have some common elements, namely the recognition of the value of the individual and their ability to choose from the available options; the importance of the relationship between an individual’s environment and their beliefs, expectations, and interests, which make up their lifestyle; and the importance of the time element, considering the fact that people change their lifestyles over time, depending on the socioeconomic conditions in which they find themselves.