The Definition of Health
Health refers to an individual’s emotional, mental and physical well-being. Healthcare exists to help people stay healthy and cope with the effects of disease, illness or injury. Health is also a key factor in managing stress and achieving a balanced lifestyle.
In 1948, the World Health Organization (WHO) defined health as “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” This definition has since become a foundation for the organization’s work.
However, a simple definition of health does not always suffice for understanding how health works and the factors that determine it. The prevailing negative conception of health is not adequate in an era marked by rapid advances in our understanding of disease processes at molecular and personal levels, and the knowledge that it may never be possible to achieve risk-free wellbeing.
The concept of allostasis provides a more appropriate framework for understanding health and disease. This theory defines health as the ability to adapt to environmental stresses and defines disease as a loss of this adaptive capacity. This new perspective on health is the basis of a growing body of scientific research and offers a more principled, holistic view of human health than the traditional, mechanistic approach that underpins many medical practices today.
A person’s health is determined by a complex interaction of genetic, biological, social and environmental factors. Some of these factors are within the control of the individual, such as choices they make about their lifestyle and habits. However, others are not. For example, a genetic tendency towards a disease can be triggered by an environmental factor, such as exposure to an infectious organism.
It is therefore difficult to achieve a universally agreed definition of health, as it depends on each individual’s assessment of their own situation and their own preferences and values. These assessments are shaped throughout life by the influence of parents, friends, teachers, the media, laws and one’s own past experiences and life course. Changing the position of health on these scales would require efforts not only to remove diseases and diminish risk factors but also to change the values of society as a whole.
The definition of health a person has may be influenced by the place it occupies on the scale of values that they have established for themselves, which can be influenced by many factors, including the quality of healthcare available, and the extent to which people value their own health and the importance they attach to preventing disease. A high esteem for health will lead to people undertaking whatever they need to do to promote it, including seeking treatment for illness and taking preventive measures. The result is that health becomes a normal part of daily living. This is an ideal that can be achieved, but it is not a task for the healthcare sector alone to undertake. It needs the full involvement of everyone in the community.
Health refers to an individual’s emotional, mental and physical well-being. Healthcare exists to help people stay healthy and cope with the effects of disease, illness or injury. Health is also a key factor in managing stress and achieving a balanced lifestyle. In 1948, the World Health Organization (WHO) defined health as “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” This definition has since become a foundation for the organization’s work. However, a simple definition of health does not always suffice for understanding how health works and the factors that determine it. The prevailing negative conception of health is not adequate in an era marked by rapid advances in our understanding of disease processes at molecular and personal levels, and the knowledge that it may never be possible to achieve risk-free wellbeing. The concept of allostasis provides a more appropriate framework for understanding health and disease. This theory defines health as the ability to adapt to environmental stresses and defines disease as a loss of this adaptive capacity. This new perspective on health is the basis of a growing body of scientific research and offers a more principled, holistic view of human health than the traditional, mechanistic approach that underpins many medical practices today. A person’s health is determined by a complex interaction of genetic, biological, social and environmental factors. Some of these factors are within the control of the individual, such as choices they make about their lifestyle and habits. However, others are not. For example, a genetic tendency towards a disease can be triggered by an environmental factor, such as exposure to an infectious organism. It is therefore difficult to achieve a universally agreed definition of health, as it depends on each individual’s assessment of their own situation and their own preferences and values. These assessments are shaped throughout life by the influence of parents, friends, teachers, the media, laws and one’s own past experiences and life course. Changing the position of health on these scales would require efforts not only to remove diseases and diminish risk factors but also to change the values of society as a whole. The definition of health a person has may be influenced by the place it occupies on the scale of values that they have established for themselves, which can be influenced by many factors, including the quality of healthcare available, and the extent to which people value their own health and the importance they attach to preventing disease. A high esteem for health will lead to people undertaking whatever they need to do to promote it, including seeking treatment for illness and taking preventive measures. The result is that health becomes a normal part of daily living. This is an ideal that can be achieved, but it is not a task for the healthcare sector alone to undertake. It needs the full involvement of everyone in the community.