Conceptualization of Health - Essay Example

Conceptualization of Health” Health is the factor that affects every part of an individuals life. Good health leads to a prosperous life. The conceptof health is known to everyone but the meaning that individuals derive from this term vary from person to person and group to group. The concept of health for children differs from that of the teenagers. The understanding of health according to gender classification also gives a different result and so on. The aim of this paper is to understand and evaluate peoples knowledge and understanding about health and understanding the term in its true context. This paper also aims to promote health education by providing a personal interpretation of the concept of health and explaining how health education may help people in understanding the term completely. Every individual has some understanding on the topic of health either adopted by the people around him or based on his presumptions and thoughts. Some people believe that health is the achievement of a sound mind in a sound body (Dash & Dash, p 1). This common understanding of health is based on the fact that a sound mind leads to proper thinking abilities and helps the person in making the right choice on the right time and a sound body helps the individual in carrying out the decisions made by the sound mind. Hence the two important factors involved in this conceptualization of health are sound mind and sound body. Some people argue that if we talk about medical terms health is the state when all systems of the body are functioning properly without any indication of disease and illness. It has been observed that a larger population believes that health is the state of being free from illness (Mathews, 2004, p 3). Younger women often tend to believe that health is the physical fitness of an individual which allows him to develop easily and successfully in all walks of life. Young women strongly believe that health is about how fit, active and smart they are physically. They believe that as long as they are not obese or underweight and are able to participate in physical activities, they are active Murthy & Smith, 2009 p 456). There are many other believes that people strongly follow to understand the concept of being healthy. All these believe are however, flawed in one way or the other. The self created definitions of health often lack in explaining the factors attached to this concept. However, people try to achieve and sustain the health levels that are set in their minds either by others’ opinions or their self conceptualization of health. Knowing the different assumptions and concepts of health that prevail in people’s mind, it becomes difficult to identify or create a new and complete definition of the term health. However, the most helpful definition that could answer people’s thoughts and perceptions about health is proposed by World Health Organization (1978). WHO states that “Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity." WHO also emphasizes on the need to attain proper education and knowledge about health and related issues (Mathews, 2004, p 3). The most common misconception about the definition and understanding about health is the absence or elimination of disease. People tend to get rid of disease and once this aim is achieved they consider themselves as healthy. However, if we evaluate this effective and efficient definition of health closely it is not difficult to rebut the presumption that health is dependent solely on the absence of disease and illnesses. Does it mean presence of disease represents healthy living? Of course not! The point to consider here is that there are numerous factors to be considered while understanding the broader concept of health. Absence of disease is one of the factors that represents health but not the one and only factor to assure a healthy life. The definition involves the mental well-being of a person as a factor that assures health and wellbeing of an individual. Mental well-being refers to the quality of thoughts, perceptions, believes and concepts of a person not only about others but also about himself, his family, friends, social circle, education, society and the world at large. A person having positive thoughts and feelings about his personality, life and personal and social issues is more likely to develop into a strong and successful person. The self confidence and positive approach of a person also leads to a healthier life. Mental well being of a person is dependent on many factors involving the family background, education, race, culture, gender and so on. The third important factor of health as described by the definition proposed by World Health Organization is the social well-being. People are greatly influenced by the society they are living in. They come across, evaluate and adopt the habits of people around them. This process of integrating in the society leads to mental satisfaction of a person and helps him in moving on with the flow of life with positive thoughts in mind. The encouragement and feeling of support from others leads to a healthy and sound mind. However, socially disabled people are more likely to face health problems in their lives. Due to isolation and limited social circle such people find lesser ways to integrate in the society. They often encounter negative thoughts and their perception about the world changes with the passing time. They take life as a burden and do not find any charm in living. Such thoughts and negative attitudes further result in life risking health issues including depression, suicide attempts, involvement in unhealthy practices like drug abusing, smoking, over eating, mental disorders etc. Before taking part in health educational campaigns and courses I had limited knowledge about health risking factors. Like others, I used to believe that health is associated with disease, illnesses and other physical problems that a person may encounter. In my opinion, a person having low self-esteem or negative thoughts but physically fit could not be judged as unhealthy. My thoughts about health were strongly related to the apparent physical condition and internal body functions. However, after acquiring the scope of the term ‘health’ and understanding the factors that affect it my views have changed significantly. Now I believe that health is affected by not only the physical or biological systems of a person but also with the family, social, educational, environmental, economic and psychological factors. After involving in this course and researching and analyzing the definition of health for this useful paper, I have become able to identify the difference between physical, mental and social health. I have now realized how a person is affected by the environment, people around him and his opinions. My personal interpretation suggests that all these factors are closely related. The reason for making such an assumption or interpretation is the fact that a person with limited social circle or having disruption in his family setting is more likely to have negative thoughts and opinions about the world/ society. With such a negative attitude, the social and mental health of an individual cannot be secured and in the end such disruptions and chaos may create serious medical consequences. I have realized the importance of health education on an individual’s life. Being an ordinary person who is striving to achieve a high standard life in today’s rapidly growing society, I think education about health and well-being is important. People often neglect their health in the pursuance of a financially sound life. They often keep work as their first priority and neglect health. Their continuous efforts and busy schedules do not let them assess their health. The understanding of health and the factors involved in achieving a healthy life, I have realized the importance of physical, mental and social activities. I have realized that money cannot buy health but medicines and a person having prior knowledge about health issues may prevent him from involving in health risking behaviors or patterns. In conclusion, we can say that people’s understanding about health and related issues is limited to their opinions. They do not have any specific information resource available to realize the conceptual errors in their understanding of health. The unavailability of resources and absence of updated information leads to a flawed concept of health and results in poor health conditions. They plan their health activities according to their self-generated ideas about healthiness. Being an ordinary person with the same limited information, I used to have a different opinion of health then what I have now. I have observed how my opinion changed about health using proper definitions and explanations. Proper health education and directions for people is a must nowadays, when people are getting more and more prone to disease and illnesses due to improper dietary practices, poor mental health, social isolation and lack of physical activity. More emphasis should be placed on health education and awareness programs must be designed to change people’s attitudes towards health. Proper guidance and information may change their attitude towards their health and may help in developing a healthier and happier society. Bibliography: Mathews, C. (2004). Healthy children: A guide for child care. Sydney: Elsevier. Dash, M., & Dash, N. (2008). Health Education. Atlantic Publishers & Distributors. Murthy, P., & Smith, C. L. (2010). Womens global health and human rights. Sudbury, Mass: Jones and Bartlett. Read More