2026’s biggest health trends that doctors should actually encourage
Industry Buzz
Positive trends that encourage patients to take an active interest in their health make my job easier. When patients are motivated, engaged, and open to discussion, it creates an opportunity for meaningful prevention and long-term improvement.
—Rigved Tadwalkar, MD
Health trends can come and go, but some may actually make a positive difference in patients’ lives. MDLinx spoke with two experts about how health trends can impact their practice, and positive trends they’ve been seeing among patients this year.
“On one hand, positive trends that encourage patients to take an active interest in their health make my job easier. When patients are motivated, engaged, and open to discussion, it creates an opportunity for meaningful prevention and long-term improvement. That kind of alignment between physician and patient is always beneficial,” Rigved Tadwalkar, MD, FACC, consultative cardiologist and director of digital transformation at Pacific Heart Institute in Santa Monica, CA, tells MDLinx.
“On the other hand, not all health trends are grounded in strong scientific evidence, and that can create challenges. It sometimes requires additional time to address misconceptions or to explain why certain popular ideas may not be effective or could even be harmful,” Dr. Tadwalkar adds.
Here are some of the trends to keep an eye on this year.
Related: 3 trends you should never recommend to patients, according to an oncologistIt’s all about balance
Experts say patients are making an effort to build habits that align with their long-term health goals.
“One of the more encouraging shifts I’ve seen is a genuine interest in health and day-to-day wellness, particularly among younger patients. Years ago, it was much more common to see people prioritize short-term habits that were clearly not aligned with long-term health, whereas now there is a noticeable cultural shift toward balance. Patients are asking about exercise routines, sleep quality, nutrition, and stress management in a way that feels more proactive rather than reactive,” Dr. Tadwalkar says.
Focusing on the details
Longevity is the flavor of the moment, and patients are interested in the finer details of how to improve their function and longevity.
“We’re seeing folks really focused on details—a comprehensive approach to … longevity. You can call it healthspan, and we call it ‘playspan,’ which is basically focusing on all the drivers that improve function … [including] capacity, tolerance, adaptation, resilience and durability,” Bert Mandelbaum, MD, sports medicine specialist, orthopedic surgeon, and co-director of the Regenerative Orthobiologic Center at Cedars-Sinai Orthopaedics in Los Angeles, tells MDLinx.
“Evolution is built into us as human beings—the capability of being a performance engine—and we just have to understand how to tweak the drivers of fitness, of load, of nutrition, of recovery, and everything in between,” Dr. Mandelbaum says.
Data-gathering and wearable devices
Whether it’s rings or watches, patients are interested in wearable devices and gathering health data.
“Devices that track activity, heart rate, and sleep have made health feel more tangible to people. Even if the data is not always perfectly precise, it has opened the door to conversations that we were not having as often before. Patients come in with questions, with data, and with a desire to improve, and that level of engagement is something I did not fully anticipate earlier in my career,” Dr. Tadwalkar says.
“In cardiology, we already have very clear examples of their value, such as detecting irregular heart rhythms like atrial fibrillation in patients who may not otherwise realize something is wrong. That alone can have meaningful implications for stroke prevention and longer-term outcomes. Beyond that, they can help patients stay engaged with their activity levels, sleep patterns, and general habits,” he adds.
But Dr. Tadwalkar cautions that any data gathered from a wearable device should be interpreted with caution. "It is important to keep them in context. These devices are tools, not definitive diagnostic instruments," Dr. Tadwalkar says.
Dr. Tadwalkar continues, “The data they provide should be interpreted carefully and, when necessary, confirmed with more established medical testing. I do sometimes see patients become overly focused on individual data points that may not reflect their overall health. When used as part of a broader, guided approach to care, they can be very helpful. When used in isolation, they can occasionally create confusion and often unnecessary anxiety.”
A shift from lifespan to healthspan
Changing attitudes toward longevity have led patients to shift their focus from how to live longer to how to live a healthier life.
“I think that shift reflects what patients want. Most people are not just trying to add years; they want those years to feel good and be functional. When you see the impact of chronic disease on daily life, it becomes clear that quality matters just as much as duration. From a cardiology perspective, that focus aligns naturally with prevention,” Dr. Tadwalkar says.
“Preserving function, independence, and overall well-being supports both lifespan and healthspan; it also encourages patients to invest in their health now rather than deferring it to some future point. In that sense, it is a very practical and grounded approach that I think benefits both patients and physicians,” he adds.
Related: This huge longevity breakthrough has a surprising source