Dr. Elizabeth (Beth) Pegg Frates is a leading name in Lifestyle Medicine, a Harvard Medical School educator of great standing, and a passionate advocate for the inclusion of clinical nutrition in medical education. Inspired by her father’s health struggles, Dr. Frates has dedicated her professional life to empowering patients and healthcare professionals to live healthy lifestyles.

Dr. Frates began her influential work in medical education in 1996 as a faculty member at Harvard Medical School. Known for her innovative teaching methods, she has won numerous awards for her contributions as a tutorial facilitator in courses on the human central nervous system and behavior, the musculoskeletal system, and the central endocrine system.

A cornerstone of her work is the comprehensive Lifestyle Medicine curriculum she developed at the Harvard Extension School. This curriculum, which places a major emphasis on clinical nutrition, serves as a model for similar programs worldwide. Dr. Frates has taught two other courses at the Harvard Extension school, Wellbeing from the Inside Out and Culinary Psychology. Both are also popular and well-received offerings at the school. The syllabus of the Lifestyle Medicine course, made available online through the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, guided educators nationally and globally in creating their own Lifestyle Medicine courses.

At the core of Dr. Frates’s teaching is the emphasis on clinical nutrition as central to health. Her teachings revolve around whole foods, balanced diets, and the role of nutrition in preventing and managing diseases. She equips medical students and professionals with hands-on, evidence-based knowledge, emphasizing the critical role of nutrition in patient care and overall well-being. Dr. Frates does not consider eating patterns in a vacuum. Instead, she considers the roles of exercise, sleep, stress, and social connection can play with regard to decisions about nutrition. 

Dr. Frates’s approach to clinical nutrition encompasses dietary choices and nutrient needs across the lifespan. Learning how to empower patients to adopt and sustain change is critical to her teachings. Dr. Frates uses motivational interviewing, appreciative inquiry, goal setting, and other health coaching strategies put nutrition knowledge into action. She seeks to educate future providers to confidently advise patients on healthy lifestyle choices that improve health outcomes.

In 2008, Dr. Frates founded the Lifestyle Medicine Interest Group (LMIG) at Harvard Medical School. This initiative provided a platform for students to learn about Lifestyle Medicine principles—particularly clinical nutrition—through interactive lectures and practical sessions. The success of LMIG at Harvard has inspired the creation of similar groups in medical schools across the country. 

As a Board Liaison for the Professionals In Training (PiT) of ACLM, in 2016, Dr. Frates helped to develop standardized educational materials, including slides on exercise prescription, nutrition, and behavior change. These original resources sparked the creation of even more handouts and roadmaps that are used to support the establishment of LMIGs around the globe, fostering a new generation of medical professionals well-versed in the essentials of Lifestyle Medicine. Partnering with the American College of Lifestyle Medicine was a great way to have an impact and reach across the nation and globe with the LMIGs.

Dr. Frates is an enthusiastic writer who has contributed to various books and medical texts related to Lifestyle Medicine. Among her many publications are books like “Life After Stroke: The Guide to Recovering Your Health and Preventing Another Stroke” and “The Lifestyle Medicine Handbook: An Introduction to the Power of Healthy Habits,” widely praised for their practical insights and evidence-based recommendations. Her “The Lifestyle Medicine Handbook” has been selected as one of the 100 Best Medicine Books of All Time by BookAuthority. She also co-authored the Lifestyle Medicine Pocket Guide, which was released in September 2023. Most recently, she co-editor the book Essentials of Clinical Nutrition for Healthcare Providers, published by McGraw Hill in June 2024. This book will hopefully serve as the textbook for medical schools, residencies, and fellowships for physicians in training. 

Dr. Beth Frates is passionate about revolutionizing the training of healthcare providers through the integration of clinical nutrition into medical education. As a true pioneer, her outstanding innovation, steadfast commitment, and profound impact on individuals and the medical field define her legacy. Through her work, Dr. Frates is not only advancing medical education but also contributing to the development of a healthier and more enlightened society.