What is health?

Everyone wants to be healthy and not be sick. But what does this mean?

What aspects of health do we need to be aware of?

How do we improve our health both individually and collectively?

According to Statista.com, Americans spent $4.8 trillion dollars on healthcare in 2023 which equated to $12,297 per person.

I understand that these figures account for spending on physical and mental health which are certainly important components of our overall health.

We need to be aware of the following areas of health:

1)    Physical health- the functioning of our body including our organs such as heart, lungs, kidneys, gastrointestinal tract, brain, muscles, skin and so on

2)    Mental health- the functioning of our mind involving the ability to think and remember, our emotions, and the organization of our use of time and what we can control of our physical body

3)    Sexual health- while this is part of our physical and mental health it is a unique area and one that can greatly affect the rest of our health

4)    Financial health- in the real world, our ability to pay for things that we need and want affects our personal health and our relationships with others.

5)    Spiritual health- there are many different beliefs and religious faiths, and this leads to a variety of approaches to the rest of life- sometimes good and sometimes bad.

6)    Environmental health- the health of the world that we live in has a direct effect on our individual health. In some environmental situations, it is not possible to have personal health. In many situations, our environment greatly affects our individual health. Often, we are not even aware of it.

7)    Societal health- the functioning of the society that we live in has a direct effect on us. Each of us either contributes to or takes away from the health of society. Each of us may do a combination of positive and negative effects.

I look forward to exploring these areas with you.