Julius Thomas, Psy.D., on the Five Habits That Actually Protect Your Health

Most people know they should eat better, sleep more and exercise regularly. What they may not know is that only about 7% of Americans are actually meeting the recommendations across all five key healthy lifestyle behaviors — and that gap, according to Julius Thomas, Psy.D., is quietly fueling a chronic disease crisis.

Thomas, a cognitive scientist, psychologist and two-time NFL Pro Bowler, points to a clear and well-researched framework backed by organizations including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). The five healthy lifestyle practices are sleep, exercise, nutrition, stress management and healthy substance use. They are simple to list, he acknowledges, but genuinely difficult to maintain consistently, and the research is unambiguous that doing only one or two of them is not enough to produce the protective effects people are looking for.

Breaking Down the Five

Quality sleep means seven to nine hours a night, something that becomes especially difficult when psychological stress is running in the background. Exercise is one of the most powerful anti-inflammatory tools available, and the recommendation is at least 150 minutes per week. Nutrition means prioritizing whole foods, increasing fiber, and reducing sugar and processed food intake — all of which contribute to a proinflammatory internal environment when neglected.

Stress management, Thomas argues, is the most universally skipped practice. Whether through meditation, deep breathing, yin yoga, forest bathing or low-intensity movement like Pilates, even 10 to 20 minutes a day of intentional stress reduction can meaningfully lower the body’s overall inflammatory load. Finally, healthy substance use means being honest about how often we reach for something (a drink, a pill, a prescription) to manage our internal state, and making sure that relationship stays responsible and intentional.

The Communication Gap Nobody Is Fixing

Thomas raises a challenge that extends beyond individual behavior: health care’s persistent failure to translate complex, evidence-based information into language patients can actually use and act on. Rich research gets presented at conferences and published in journals but rarely makes it into the exam room in a form that sticks. His interest lies in helping patients move beyond managed care toward genuine self-management, helping them develop the behavioral health skills to protect themselves between appointments, not just during them.

That thread connects back to low-grade chronic inflammation, a concept Thomas returns to consistently. Because it exists below the symptom threshold, it requires awareness rather than reaction. People will not feel it coming. The only protection is education, behavioral change and a proactive understanding of what stresses the body and what reduces that load over time.