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Historically, healthcare benefits have reflected the changing needs and expectations of employees. In recent years, this pattern has taken the form of companies implementing benefits that are designed to help employees optimise their wellbeing through positive lifestyle changes, such a weight management and metabolic health.

While this is a fairly new trend, it is a rapidly growing one, and so it's important employers and HR leaders remain aware of changing expectations, and what perks to offer to keep a competitive edge.

In this article, we look at some of the most common Lifestyle Health benefits employers are offering and the many benefits of doing so.

What are Lifestyle Health benefits?

Lifestyle health benefits typically focus on the 6 pillars of lifestyle health medicine.

1. Nutrition: Resources for balanced eating, sustainable and long-term diet advice, access to nutritionists, weight management and GLP-1s.

2. Physical activity: Support for movement and ergonomic home-office setups.

3. Restorative sleep: Tools to improve sleep hygiene, such as subscriptions to sleep apps (Calm, Headspace) or light therapy devices, access to sleep experts.

4. Stress management: Mental health support that goes beyond therapy, including mindfulness workshops, meditation apps, and flexible "recharge" hours.

5. Social connection: Initiatives to foster community, such as team-building retreats, socials, or volunteer time off.

6. Avoidance of risky substances: Programmes specifically for smoking cessation, recreational drugs or alcohol reduction.

How do Lifestyle Health benefits differ from traditional healthcare benefits?

Private Medical Insurance (PMI) schemes have made healthcare accessible to millions. However, employee expectations are changing, with a growing demand for wraparound healthcare benefits that help people live healthier lives.

Like menopause, neurodiversity, and fertility benefits, lifestyle health benefits are not an alternative to PMI schemes, but designed to work alongside PMI in order to ensure employee healthcare expectations are being met and to provide employees with comprehensive care across life's key transitions. Here are some of the differences and examples of how traditional healthcare benefits and lifestyle healthbenefits can complement each other.

1. Reactive vs proactive focus

Traditional healthcare benefits. These are often reactive to health problems designed to provide treatment and support when something goes wrong (e.g., you get the flu, break a bone, or need surgery).

Lifestyle health: These benefits are fundamentally proactive. They focuses on optimising daily habits (sleep, nutrition, and stress) to reduce the risk of chronic conditions and long-term health issues.

A benefits package that supports both proactive and reactive healthcare is truly comprehensive and inclusive to all employees. ‍Fertifa is a leading reproductive health and neurodiversity benefits provider, covering all underserved areas of healthcare. Fertifa fills the gaps between PMI provision and general practice healthcare to offer inclusive and comprehensive health benefits for all employees, in one place.

2. Clinical vs holistic scope

Traditional healthcare benefits: Limited to clinical needs. It covers doctor visits, hospital stays, and prescription drugs and is governed by strict medical codes and "medical necessity."

Lifestyle health: Broad and holistic. It covers non-clinical factors that dictate 80% of health outcomes, such as fitness memberships, meal delivery services, ergonomics for remote work, and even financial wellness coaching.

3. "One-size-fits-all" vs personalised plans

Traditional healthcare benefits: Usually offers a few "tiers" (Gold, Silver, Bronze). Everyone in the plan has the same coverage regardless of age or gender.‍

Lifestyle health: At Fertifa, our Lifestyle Health benefit is driven by personalisation that reflects the specific needs of employees.

4. Utilisation and employee engagement

Traditional healthcare: Most employees only "engage" with their health insurance a few times a year—usually when they are stressed or ill. It is a "passive" benefit.

Lifestyle health: Designed for daily engagement, whether it’s using a meditation app, tracking steps for a company challenge, or ordering healthy groceries through a stipend, these benefits are integrated into the employee's everyday life.

Weight loss management

Following the uptake of GLP-1 medications in recent years, more and more employers are beginning to consider the impact of including weight management and/or weight loss into their health and wellbeing benefits packages. But it isn’t just medication they are providing.

Holistic lifestyle health benefits often include access to services that help people put together personalised exercise and dietary plans which, alongside GLP-1s, can massively accelerate someone’s long-term health journey. Proper investment in weight management can help create a fitter, happier, and more productive workforce. A look at the numbers:

• More than a quarter of UK employees have used a weight-management drug
• Two fifths of employees think their boss should offer weight-management drugs within their employee benefits
• As a result, 44% of employers are reassessing their healthcare plans altogether

A combination of GLP-1s with lifestyle support (coaching, sleep, and nutrition) leads to a 7% to 9% reduction in medical spend growth compared to those who just take the medication alone. A holistic lifestyle health benefit that supports both is a great way for employers to reduce these costs.

‍Fertifa's Lifestyle Health programme aims to develop sustainable habits for weight management to prevent long-term health conditions. From GLP-1 prescriptions if needed, to advice on cortisol and stress management, Fertifa supports employees with ongoing care throughout their journeys.

Six reasons why companies are investing in Lifestyle Health benefits

Lifestyle Health benefits reflect a more proactive approach to healthcare, that centres on developing positive habits and behaviours to improve physical, metabolic, and mental health. By offering employees access to resources, specialists and medication that help people become healthier, employers are helping to reduce the risk of longer-term health complications.

There are many reasons why employers might consider implementing Lifestyle Health benefits. We’ve put together a list of some of the most common.

1. Filling the gaps left in PMI schemes

For decades, PMI schemes have have functioned as a a safety net that for employees who fall ill. It's no surprise, therefore, that Lifestyle Health benefits and any others designed to help employees stay healthy and avoid illness are not included.

Today, more and more employers are implementing lifestyle benefits plans to work alongside PMI schemes and offer their people genuinely comprehensive healthcare. By working with providers like Fertifa, employers are giving their people on-demand access to the specialist services they need to develop daily habits that prevent illnesses so treatment isn't necessary.

·       Target unhealthy daily habits/challenges: Targeting early markers like elevated cortisol, poor sleep, and rising BMI helps prevent chronic conditions (Type 2 diabetes and heart disease, for example) before they require expensive, lifelong medical intervention.

·       Preventing chronic conditions and their treatment costs: Preventive strategies help curb the cost of premiums. For example, making lifestyle changes to reduce the risk of diabetes is significantly more cost-effective than managing a chronic diagnosis for twenty years.

2. Metabolic health as a weight loss foundation

Lifestyle Health focuses on metabolic health, acknowledging that physical aspects like weight are often symptoms of a hormonal imbalance.

·       Insulin and cortisol: Lifestyle health benefits that help employees reduce stress (lowering cortisol) and improve nutrition will help them achieve more sustainable weight loss.

·       Integrated support: Many clinical weight-loss treatments (including GLP-1s) are now paired with behavioural coaching to ensure that physical changes are not temporary but sustained by healthier long-term habits.

3. Recognising the importance of sleep to productivity and mental health

Sleep deprivation is a massive "hidden" drain on productivity. Lifestyle Health employee benefits often include access to sleep therapists and medication (if needed) to treat it. This can have significant, positive impacts:

·       Employee wellbeing and long-term physical health: Sleep therapy, such as Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) for insomnia, is proven to help people improve the quality and duration of their sleep, leading to increased daily productivity and long-term health benefits (such as improved metabolism and cardiovascular health).

·       Cognitive ROI: People with optimised sleep cycles are less likely to experience burnout.

·       “Circadian health” coaching: Some lifestyle health benefits include "circadian health" coaching which helps remote workers align their biological clocks with their work schedules to reduce long-term health risks.

4. Reducing the health impacts of cortisol spikes through stress

While some people thrive in high-pressure environments, it’s important to remember that consistent stress raises cortisol levels which can have long-term health consequences (a weakened immune system, for example).

Companies who give their people the tools they need to manage stress, from medication apps to therapy to arrangements that help establish a better work-life balance, help reduce the costs associated with workplace stress:

Work-related stress or anxiety resulted in 22 million lost working days in 2024/25.

5. Tackling nicotine dependence and smoking

Smoking is a leading cause of preventable death and disease, severely damaging nearly every organ, particularly through increased risks of cancer, cardiovascular disease, stroke, and chronic respiratory illnesses. Benefits that help people quit tend to target the root of the addiction:

- Stress-linked: Many employees smoke or vape to manage stress or social anxiety. By offering alternative stress-relief benefits (like mindfulness or exercise credits), companies provide a longer-term solution.

- Premium savings: A nicotine-free workforce sees immediate drops in insurance risk profiles, leading to direct savings for both the employer and the employee.

6. Attracting talent

Gen Z and Millennial talent increasingly view a company’s healthcare offering as a proxy for its values, with expectations of wellbeing support growing in number. Lifestyle Health benefits help a company meet these expectations and attract top talent as a result.

- Preventative healthcare benefits show that a company values it’s people by investing in their mental wellbeing.

- Retention: Data shows that employees who feel their company cares about their long-term health are 60% less likely to look for a new job, leading to reduced turnover costs and higher employee satisfaction.

Employer-funded lifestyle health support through Fertifa

Fertifa's Lifestyle Health programme aims to develop sustainable long-term habits for weight management to prevent chronic health conditions.

From GLP-1 prescriptions if needed, to advice on cortisol and stress management, we support employees with ongoing care throughout their journeys.