The World Health Organization (1948) defines health as a state of complete

physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of infirmity. While

this definition does address the common misconception that health is simply the absence

of sickness, it does not address the additional factors that may affect health like that of the

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration (2016) eight dimensions of

wellness. Therefore, health is a state of complete physical, mental, social, emotional,

environmental, financial, intellectual, occupational, and spiritual well-being (SAMHSA,

2016; WHO, 1948). This definition fuses the WHO definition of health and SAMHSAs

eight dimensions of wellness together to constitute a more complete definition of health.

This new definition includes an extensive list of determinants that influence an overall

positive well-being. It is extremely important to educate individuals about the

determinants of health so that they can increase their ability to make proactive decisions

that will directly affect their health and longevity.

Health education is the utilization of exercises, workshops, lectures, public

service announcements and/or other activities to help individuals improve their health.

The overall goal of health education is to prevent health problems from occurring

altogether or to slow the advancement of health problems via early detection. Health

education should be comprehensive in that it explains how the aforementioned

determinants influence health and should also cover a broad range of health topics.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2015), a comprehensive

curriculum addresses the topics of alcohol/drug use and abuse, nutrition, physical activity,

mental and emotional health, personal health and wellness, safety and injury prevention,

sexual health, tobacco use, and violence prevention. With the continued advancement of
technology and the fairly recent recognition of different sexual orientations, the topics of

Internet safety, cyber bullying, and LGBTQ issues should also be included in

comprehensive health education. Furthermore, comprehensive health education makes it

possible to identify with and discuss issues that pertain to all different types of

populations.

Health education should be delivered to all populations, but especially to

underserved communities. Communities that are underserved or underrepresented are

often less likely to have access to health information or lack the financial resources to

receive care. Therefore, it is imperative for these populations to receive education about

how they can prevent health problems from occurring. Because underserved communities

are often below the poverty line, health education should be delivered in places that are

easily accessed and frequently visited such as free clinics, schools, hospitals, doctors

offices, and the workplace. Schools and the workplace are two of the most effective

settings to deliver health education because it reaches all age ranges. Additionally, these

two places are where children and adults spend a majority of their time. This is not only

convenient for those that are receiving health education, but it also allows for health

educators to reach a substantial amount of people at once.

 References

Components of the whole school, whole community, whole child (WSCC). (2015, August

19). Retrieved February 5, 2017, from

https://www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/wscc/components.htm

Eight dimensions of wellness. (2016, July 1). Retrieved February 5, 2017, from

https://www.samhsa.gov/wellness-initiative/eight-dimensions-wellness

WHO definition of health. (1948, April 7). Retrieved February 05, 2017, from

http://www.who.int/about/definition/en/print.html