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Health is the level of functional and/or metabolic efficiency
of an organism at both the micro(cellular) and macro(social) level. In
the medical field, health is commonly defined as an organism's ability to efficiently respond to challenges (stressors) and effectively restore and sustain a "state of balance", known as homeostasis.
Another widely accepted definition of health is that of the World Health Organization
(WHO), which states that "health is a state of complete physical,
mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or
infirmity"
In more recent years, this statement has been modified to include the
ability to lead a "socially and economically productive life." The WHO
definition is not without criticism, as some argue that health cannot
be defined as a state at all, but must be seen as a process of
continuous adjustment to the changing demands of living and of the
changing meanings we give to life. The WHO definition is therefore
considered by many as an idealistic goal rather than a realistic
proposition.
The LaLonde report suggested that there are four general determinants of health which he called "human biology", "environment", "lifestyle", and "healthcare organization" Thus, health is maintained through the science and practice of medicine, but can also be improved by individual effort. Physical fitness, weight loss, a healthy diet, stress management training and stopping smoking and other substance abuse
are examples of steps to improve one's health. Workplace wellness
programs are recognized by an increasingly large number of companies
for their value in improving health and well-being of their employees,
and increasing morale, loyalty and productivity at work. Workplace
wellness programs can include things like onsite fitness centers,
health presentations, wellness newsletters, access to health coaching,
tobacco cessation programs and training related to nutrition, weight and stress management. Other programs may include health risk assessments, health screenings and body mass index monitoring. Mostly overseen or not mentioned is a group of determinants of health which could be called coincidence, hazard, luck or bad luck. These factors are quite important determinants of health but difficult to calculate.
An increasing measure of the health of populations is height, which
is strongly regulated by nutrition and health care, among other
standard of living and quality of life matters. The study of human
growth, its regulators and its implications is known as auxology.
Wellness is a term sometimes used to describe the psychological state of being
healthy, but is most often used in the field of alternative medicine to describe
one's state of being. This term however is quite hard to fully define
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