According to the World Health Organization (WHO) (2018), health is defined as a state of complete mental, physical and social well-being, and not just the absence of disease or infirmity. Although this constitutional definition of health has not changed since it was amended in 1948, the definition needs to be upgraded as society continues to grow in diversity and technology through the years.
Huber (2011) identified three main limitation of the WHO definition of health. First, applying the current definition of health by WHO to our current society would deem the whole population as “unhealthy”. It is almost an impossible goal for individuals or groups to be in a “complete” state of mental, physical and social well-being (Huber, 2011). Realistically speaking, no one has that kind of perfection. The concept of attaining completeness supports increased need of medical technologies, drug industries and redefining diseases; which ultimately expands the scope of the healthcare system (Huber, 2011). The pressure to achieve complete physical well-being causes the increase use of new expensive technology to screen diseases on several groups when it may only be beneficial to one individual (Huber, 2011). Second, society is more demographically diversified and disease patterns have evolved. The use of public health interventions such as improved nutrition, sanitation and hygiene has brought changes in the patterns of diseases (Huber, 2011). Also, the increase in chronic diseases has caused people to learn to adapt and cope in order to still feel healthy. The concept feeling healthy while dealing with a chronic disease ultimately goes against the WHO definition, as it views people with chronic disease and disabilities definitively ill (Huber, 2011). It excludes the human ability to autonomously adapt within life’s changing social, emotional and physical challenges (Huber, 2011). Third, although the WHO identified several forms to classify and describe disease, health, disability, functioning and quality of life, it remains impractical nor measurable due to the term “complete” (Huber, 2011).
Based on the strict standards of the definition of health by the WHO, health becomes an illusion; making it appear as though most people are unhealthy for most of the time (Brüssow, 2013). Health cannot be viewed as a fixed entity as it varies from one individual to the next depending on their experience (Anonymous, 2009). Health should be viewed as an elusive and motivational idea that replaces perfection with adaptation. It should involve a more compassionate, comforting and creative approach to medicine; in which everyone can contribute (Anonymous, 2009). In addition to attaining some sense of mental, physical and social well-being, health should also include an individual’s ability to adapt and self-manage (Huber, 2011). According to Huber (2011), the concept of adaptation and self-management is to be identified and characterized in the physical, mental and social domains of health. By successfully adapting to an illness, an individual can still feel healthy to actively work or participate in social activities despite their limitations (Huber, 2011).
In summary, as per the literature explored, the definition of health by the WHO is outdated. In our modern society, the definition of health should implicate relativity and relevance to current trends. It should focus on the individual and the individual’s ability to cope and adapt to everyday health and life challenges.
References
Anonymous. (2009). What is health? The ability to adapt. The Lancet, 373-781. Retrieved from https://www.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/lancet/PIIS0140-6736(09)60456-6.pdf
Brüssow, H. (2013). What is health? Microbial Biotechnology, 6(4), 341–348. http://doi.org/10.1111/1751-7915.12063
Huber, M. (2011). HEALTH: HOW SHOULD WE DEFINE IT? BMJ: British Medical Journal, 343(7817), 235-237. Retrieved from http://0-www.jstor.org.aupac.lib.athabascau.ca/stable/23051314
World Health Organization (WHO) (2018). Frequently Asked Questions. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/suggestions/faq/en/