Making preventive medicine more personalized: implications for exercise-related research

Abstract

Objective: This commentary offers a discussion of the need to consider behavioral interventions such as physical exercise as integral components of personalized medicine.

Methods: We discuss the concept of personalized medicine and review existing evidence of variability in response to exercise training.

Results: We argue that increased understanding is needed regarding sources of variability in exercise responsiveness, and that such understanding should lead to more tailored, often multimodal interventions.

Conclusion: Studies of personalized medicine to date have primarily investigated heterogeneity in drug responsiveness; we believe it is time to begin considering preventive strategies such as exercise within a broader scope of personalized care.