Concepts Of Health Analysis

CONCEPTS OF HEALTH
Introduction
This essay will firstly discuss what health is as a broad concept, look at the differences of health looking at the negative and positive aspects and how health can be socially constructed. Defining what is meant by holistic health and what effects promoting health can help reduce individuals getting ill by working together in society and looking at changes that need to be made and recognised. Health has a wide range of meanings which all need to be considered, it is not merely an absence of disease or infirmity but a state of complete state of physical, mental and social wellbeing (WHO 1948). Disease, illness and ill health have different meanings although there are used similarly.
Health is looked at in these different types of categories, emotional, spiritual, sexual, social, mental and physical, these are what affect a person as an individual where as broader influences are social and environmental. Social aspects are what can affect a person physically looking at quality of life, good or poor water facilities in the area that can affect our health and also living conditions and how well houses are built making sure there is plenty of light and air vents to prevent mould that can cause ill health (Naidoo and Wills, 2009, pg5). Mould can be very harmful to health as it produces toxin and allergens so if inhaled or comes into contact with skin it may cause an allergic reaction, cause redness or eyes and if already a person suffers from asthma this could trigger and asthma attack (Nhs.uk,
Health promotion was first used in the mid 1970s (Sholom Glouberman, 2003). The aims of promoting health is to change the way it is broadly perceived so rather than concentrating on the illness itself to make the individual medically better. It focuses more on how to prevent people becoming ill primarily and what changes environmentally and socially we can participate in to reduce illness and look at more on being healthy fit individuals. Health promotion is categorised in three main sections, primary, secondary and tertiary . Primary prevention looks to what triggers ill health by detecting high risk groups, it looks at immunisation specially at young children/babies to eradicate the problem disease from coming back and also educating individuals at schools and workplaces and free health advice or counselling about how to prevent ill health (Naidoo and Wills, 2009, pg57). Secondary prevention looks at reducing episodes and prevention of illness by changing health damaging behaviour or lifestyle that contribute to ill health like educating people about medication as it can be damaging as well as trying to make us better, looking at healthy eating and a change in an unhealthy lifestyle and using that to prevent illnesses such as diabetes (Naidoo and Wills, 2009, pg57). Tertiary prevention finally focuses on making an individual who may have disability continue to