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Understanding Health And Health Promotion

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There is a wide spectrum of perspectives on the definition of both health and health promotion. I have determined that there is no “correct” way to describe these concepts, but multiple conceptualizations of each. An individual’s health status can be determined using a wide variety of factors, and there are several different methods of promoting health. This paper aims to identify the concepts that I believe define health and health promotion most accurately, based on my personal opinions and experiences.
In my opinion, health is all encompassing, meaning that it is not merely defined by the absence of disease, but rather it is a combination of factors that contribute to a sense of well-being. Doctor Margaret Newman’s wellness-illness continuum (2003) defines health on a spectrum, with wellness at one end and illness at the other. This concept is one-dimensional and views health negatively, such that if an individual isn’t well, they are ill (Hall, Perry, Potter & Stockert, 2014). Viewing health positively encompasses physical, psychological, social and environmental factors. From this perspective, an individual can be chronically ill, but still achieve wellness if they are living a meaningful life (Hall et al., 2014). To integrate all of these factors, the wellness-illness spectrum incorporates the concept of high level wellness. High level wellness involves an assessment of an individual’s ability to achieve wellness based on their environment, as well as their health

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