It is difficult to define health in a single, universally agreed upon definition. In fact, a very different definition of good health might be required in different countries and environments. It is important to understand that a person is not necessarily healthy if they have no disease. Being healthy means not having any disease, but also being able to manage and prevent it. However, a simple absence of disease is not a reliable indicator of good health.
The first definition of health is the absence of disease. This approach emphasizes the importance of preventing and curing diseases. But what is health? It’s an umbrella term that includes physical, mental, social, and economic well-being. Promotion of health would involve taking action to eliminate or minimize the number of illnesses. The second definition, known as the biopsychosocial model, emphasizes that being healthy means that people are free from any form of illness or disability.
The World Health Organisation’s constitution came into force in 1948 and defines health as “a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being”. While this is a lofty goal, it does have some important points worth considering. One of them is that health is not dependent on a disease and that it’s possible to be healthy at any time. Instead, health can be a state of total well-being. The second definition is the one most commonly applied in hospitals and clinics.