#68 – Dr. Stefanos N. Kales | Mediterranean Diet, Lifestyle Medicine & Disease Prevention | Harvard Professor

Send us Fan MailA Harvard professor explains why Mediterranean lifestyle principles—nutrition, sleep, and culture—may be our most powerful tools for preventing chronic disease, especially in high-stress professions.Join Dr. Sandra Cammarata and Dr. Giovanni Campanile as they speak with Dr. Stefanos N. Kales, Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Professor and Director of the Occupational Medicine Residency at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Dr. Kales is also Chief of Occupational Medicine and Medical Director for Employee Health at Cambridge Health Alliance, a Harvard-affiliated hospital system.In this wide-ranging conversation, Dr. Kales explores how Mediterranean lifestyle principles—nutrition, physical activity, sleep, and social connection—can be powerful tools for disease prevention, particularly in high-stress and safety-sensitive professions. Drawing on decades of research and real-world intervention work, he explains why lifestyle medicine is not abstract theory, but a practical, scalable solution for improving health outcomes in workplaces, hospitals, and communities.Dr. Kales shares insights from his leadership of landmark Mediterranean diet conferences, as well as his ongoing “Survival Mediterranean Style” initiative, which brings evidence-based nutrition and lifestyle strategies to firefighters, first responders, and other high-risk occupational groups. He also reflects on how cultural traditions, family food practices, and lived experience shape long-term health more powerfully than short-term interventions.Listeners will gain a deeper understanding of how Mediterranean living can move beyond the kitchen—into schools, workplaces, and healthcare systems—as a sustainable model for chronic disease prevention and healthier lives.Find more of Dr. Kales here:https://www.linkedin.com/in/stefanos-kales-500739a0/Find more of us here:Websites: https://siciliansecret.com/coraeon.comfunctionalheart.comOur Book: https://www.amazon.com/Sicilian-Secret-Diet-4-color-trade/dp/189969496X/Our Supplements: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BWZLCM6HYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/@siciliansecretdietInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/siciliansecretdiet/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Sicilian-Secret-Diet-106204798725447Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@siciliansecretdietApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-sicilian-secret-diet/id1566575032