It’s a new year, and you might be thinking of ways to improve your health in 2026.
Andrew Ditto, M.D., is offering some advice for folks looking to make a change.
Dr. Ditto, who recently moved from Meritus Family Medicine in the Robinwood Professional Center to the newly opened Meritus Primary Care at the Valley Mall, said it’s the sort of things he’d tell his patients at their yearly physical.
“The single highest-value change that someone can make is to stop drinking dessert, to stop drinking high-sugar beverages,” he said. “Whether it’s Mexican Coke or soda with high-fructose corn syrup, it doesn’t matter. Stop drinking sweetened things.”
The reason why?
“It is high calories with zero nutritional value,” he said. “It can be the cause of diabetes and pre-diabetes.”
Related to that, Dr. Ditto’s second piece of advice also has to do with food.
“Try to eat foods that are as close to coming out of the ground, off the plant, from the animal, etc., as possible,” he said. “When you’re grocery shopping, try to stick to the outside edges of the grocery store. You should try to avoid all the processed and boxed foods in the middle of the grocery store.”
In other words: Fresh is best. Just like soda, processed foods often have little nutritional value and are loaded with additives that the body has trouble processing.
Another new year suggestion is to get moving, Dr. Ditto said.
The average person should be getting about two and a half hours of exercise per week. That can be broken up however it best fits your schedule, he said.
“If you want to do 30 minutes a day five days a week, or an hour Saturday and an hour Sunday, then another 30 minutes another day, that’s fine,” he said.
Ideally, the exercise should be broken down into half strength training and half cardio — the kind of workout that gets your heart pumping.
“That said, something is better than nothing,” Dr. Ditto said. “Don’t let time be a factor. Five minutes of walking around is better than five minutes of sitting.”
He said to find ways to build exercise into your daily routine. Park farther away from the store entrance and walk. Take the stairs.
One last thing Dr. Ditto recommends is to not go it alone.
“Try to interact with friends and family,” he said. “Relationships are good for someone’s wellbeing, helping to prevent dementia down the line.”
For those who feel lonely and don’t have friends or family to talk to, he recommended the Meritus Care Caller program.
Meritus started the program based on studies that found loneliness and social isolation can impact life expectancy as much as smoking, obesity and physical inactivity. For 15 or 20 minutes once every few weeks, a volunteer or paid caller will call a person who has said they feel lonely.
Those interested can learn more by calling 301-790-8491 or emailing carecaller@meritushealth.com.
In the end, Dr. Ditto’s advice for the new year is common sense, though admittedly it can be tough to put into practice.
“It’s never too late to start again,” he said.
To learn more about Meritus Primary Care at the Valley Mall, visit www.meritushealth.com/ValleyMallPC or call 301-790-9236.
