Cultural Views on Health

Cultural Views on Health

There are several different types of beliefs that might affect the way that one adheres to one’s healthcare needs and the way that one might feel about their healthcare options. Some cultures believe that one’s health is based upon germs or abnormalities of the body and the appearance or knowledge of these factors in an individual. Other cultures believe that one’s health is determined by one’s state of mental, social and physical well-being rather than the absence of disease or abnormalities. Even other cultures believe that one’s health is focused primarily on the belief of stigmas and curses. Healthcare professionals should have some knowledge of their patient’s cultural beliefs. This way they are able to care properly for an individual and their needs. Knowledge is power. In this paper we will be covering some of the Southeastern Asian and Middle Eastern cultural beliefs and how they affect one’s healthcare.
The healthcare provider must be familiar with the different Asian traditions and beliefs that may affect one’s health when caring for an individual associated with an Asian culture. Traditional Chinese beliefs, even though somewhat similar, can be different from those believed by those in southeastern Asia. “Traditional Chinese health beliefs adopt a holistic view emphasizing the importance of environmental factors in increasing risk of disease. These factors influence the balance of body's harmony, yin and yang. These are two opposite but complementary forces and, together with qi (vital energy), they control the universe and explain the relationship between people and their surroundings. Imbalance in these two forces, or in the qi, results in illness.” (Sino, 2003) Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) follows a health as harmony approach by basing one’s diagnostics on the overall observations of the patient’s symptoms instead of those based on laboratory tests.
The Chinese also view instances such as mental health issues... [continues]

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