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- Why is it so hard to get healthier?

Over 70% of health budgets are spent on diseases caused by our behaviour

Pandemics aside, the accelerating growth of lifestyle diseases is the biggest threat to public health today.

Putting heavy burdens on individuals, families, workplaces, and our health services.

In short, on all sides of society. Not the least economically.

The annual cost of diabetes treatment alone is estimated to 825 billion USD by 2030.

There are four main causes for lifestyle diseases.

Too little physical activity, unhealthy eating, smoking, and drinking.

They have one thing in common. They can be prevented by changes in behaviour.

The good news is that more and more people really want to change.

The bad news is that most of them fail, even those who are the most motivated.

Some 20 years ago, we set out to learn why it's so difficult to change.

The search led us to the brain.

More news

The brain doesn't like changes in behaviour.
So it makes it difficult.

Every time we try to change a habit, an alarm goes off in the brain and it starts a series of processes to stop us.

The brain sees all sudden changes in behaviour as possible threats.

It releases hormones and psychological processes that literally force us back to the old habit.

This ability has evolved over thousands of years and is one of the reasons we are still here today.

Because it prevented our ancestors from doing stupid things.

Like eating poisonous stuff that looked tempting or taking a new route with unknown dangers back to the village, after hunting.

The stone age man lived in a harsh environment where just a small change in behaviour could be lethal.

Unfortunately, this smart resistance to change is not helpful for modern man who has developed a lifestyle that itself is a big threat.

That is why we have combined psychology and technology in a new way that can persuade the brain to turn off the alarm and accept change.

This is why

We have developed a new way to persuade the brain.
So it gets easier.

The method uses forty years of research to make it easier to change behaviours, habits and lifestyle. So, we call it Easychange.

Throughout the years our brain has developed an effective arsenal of impulses and psychological processes to prevent us from changing.

Some are generic and appear in all change attempts and some are only active in specific areas and situations.

We call them predictors because their occurrence is vital to the outcome of a change attempt.

We have categorized more than fifty predictors and the chronology in which they appear, in various behaviour change areas.

Such as eating habits, activity level, drinking patterns, smoking habits and many more.

We have also reviewed over forty years of international research in psychology, in search for techniques and therapies that have proven to be effective against the change preventing processes.

We found over five hundred.

All proven to be effective in randomized controlled trials, published in acknowledged scientific journals.

We call these techniques and therapies intervents because they can intervene in the brain's attempts to prevent behavioural change.

All the fifty predictors and the five hundred intervents are stored in our psychology database.

When we develop a programme, we map out the likely chronology of the predictors and arrange the associated intervents to give the user just in time support.

The result is what we call personal change programming (PCP) and the effect is well documented.

Learn more

Everything is based on research and science

Our database contains over forty years of research in psychology and studies of how the brain responds to change.

Download white paper:
Easychange. A description of the psychological basis.

The basis for Easychange is thoroughly rooted in recognized science and research.

Every element of content has been documented to be effective in published randomized controlled trials.

This is how we can say that Easychange is 100% evidence based.

The scientific basis has three layers.

The theoretical foundation, the basic therapeutic principles, and the predictors of successful change.

The theoretical foundation includes goals and intention theory, self-determination theory, self-efficacy theory and self-regulation theory.

The basic therapeutic principles are motivational interviewing, cognitive behavioral therapy, metacognitive therapy and affect regulation.

Our collection of predictors for successful change consist of 24 generic predictors, such as hyperbolic discounting, snowballing, impulse control, ironic mental processes, and self- handicapping.

And over 25 domain specific predictors that only appear in specific behaviour change domains.

This is described in more detail in the white paper for download.

The short version: Trying to change a behaviour without any control of the processes in the brain is like trying to make a car go faster without touching the engine.

Scientific basis

The results have been thoroughly documented

7 RCTs and over 20 user studies show that Easychange makes it much easier to succeed in behaviour change.

The Easychange programmes have been tested in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) with control groups, the same way that medicines are tested for efficacy.

All the RCTs have been conducted by independent research institutions and published in acknowledged scientific journals after peer-review.

Three RCTs have been admitted into the Cochrane library for excellent health research.

Full stop (smoking cessation) 21% smoke free after 12 months. 2 RCTs in Addiction and Cochrane.

Drink less (Balance.) 20% average reduction after 6 moths. Addiction and Cochrane.

Less stress. 35% average reduction after 3 months. Journal of medical internet research.

Feel better. Significant improvement of mood. Journal of positive Psychology

Lose weight. Proves to be good support. Persuasive Psychology

Live better with HIV. Significant improvements of life quality. Aids Care

Mamma Mia. Increased subjective wellbeing and reduced risk for perinatal depression.

We also have a number of qualitative and quantitative user studies and case studies.

Download overview of RCTs and user studies.

See documentation

The programme design is minimalistic and easy to navigate

The friendly tone-of-voice creates a therapeutic relationship with the user and contributes to high compliance.

The programmes are built up with a series of automated interactive sessions, a little like sessions with a therapist or coach. Every session is unique.

The minimalistic «no-nonsense» design underlines the seriousness of the content, and the tone of voice is friendly and never authoritarian.

The language is oral and free from medical terms.

The sessions take place in different “rooms” that are hosted by a programme presenter.

Their mission is to lead the users through the sessions in the same way as the guides at an art exhibition.

The sequence of the sessions follows the mapped-out chronology of the processes in the brain aimed at stopping the ongoing changes in behaviour.

The three main principles behind the sessions are:

The user only takes small steps at the time towards the goal for the behaviour change, to minimize the brain's reaction.

The user gets just-in-time support to overcome the occurring different impulses and processes.

And not the least, the user learns how to deal with relapses as a natural part of a behavioural change process.

Most programmes also have an automated 24/7 Extra help function.

The programmes have tests at different stages so that the users can observe their own progress.

Programme structure

Programmes

Easychange Lifestyle app

Eat better More active Less stress Feel better Full stop Sleep better Drink less Focus Better days Lifestyle test

This portal app has Easychange programmes for 7 major public health areas and a Lifestyle check that recommends the right programmes.

Mamma Mia.

Support through
pregnancy and after birth

Mamma Mia can increase wellbeing and reduce the risk of perinatal depression, to relieve an already heavily burdened maternity care system.

The Diabetes portal has a check that recommends the right Easychange programme for patients with type 2 diabetes and pre-diabetes conditions.

Easychange for COPD

The COPD portal has a check that recommends one or more of 4 programmes for patients with COPD

Spirit.

Live better with MS

Spirit was developed in cooperation with experts in the treatment and care of patients with various states of MS and is suitable for all.

Focus.

Live better with ADHD

Focus was developed in cooperation with experts in the treatment of ADHD for adult patients, and the patients themselves.

Better days.

Live better with a chronic disease

Better days is a generic programme that can help patients with a chronic disease to reduce negative thoughts and increase their level of happiness.

Areas of use

Public healthcare, clinics and GPs

Easychange Lifestyle portal app

Self-help for behaviour change for all patients or groups.
Offered in consultations or mass distributed.
Reduced burden on GPs and primary care.

Easychange for Diabetes 2

Effective self-help for diabetes 2 and pre-diabetes.
Can be used with other treatments.

Easychange for COPD

5 self-help programmes that make life with COPD easier.
Reduced burden on GPs and special care.

Spirit. Live better with MS

Positive psychology to increase happiness level.

Focus. Live better with ADHD

Can be used with or without medication.

Better days. Live better with a chronic disease

For all patients diagnosed with a chronic disease.

The Easychange programmes are powerful tools for increased effectiveness and cost reductions in public healthcare.

There is no dispute that most users of the healthcare system would benefit from behavioural change in one or more areas.

And that this represents a huge potential for prevention and reduced spending on chronic diseases.

The problem, of course, is that behavioural change is difficult, and most people fail even when they are highly motivated. For example, after getting a diagnosis.

Easychange offers no miracle cure. The users still have to do the changes themselves, and many will still fail. But our documentation shows that many more than before will succeed.

So, the question is: With a minimal cost per user, can the healthcare system afford not to try?

Here is a list of areas that would benefit the most.

Healthy comeback after Covid
Prevention of lifestyle diseases
Live better with chronic diseases
Lifestyle changes for patients with Diabetes 2
Lifestyle changes for pre-diabetes
Habit change pre surgery
Habit change post surgery
Support for COPD
Support for MS
Support for ADHD

And, not the least, help and support for healthcare workers to increase wellbeing and reduce sick leave.

Please contact us for more information.

Maternity care

Mamma Mia

Safe support during pregnancy and after birth.
Can increase subjective wellbeing and prevent depression.
Adds much-needed mental support.
Users are better prepared for consultations.
Fits well into the maternity pathway.
Can reduce pressure on maternity care.

Mamma Mia fills a gap in the maternity pathway by providing much-needed mental support, both during pregnancy and after birth.