What does health mean to individuals?
Health is the interaction between the physical, social, emotional, mental and spiritual dimensions.
Many terms have emerged to express the nature of health, such as well-being, wellness, health, status, and state of being.
Health is dynamic, changing over time and means different things to different people during different times in their life.
Health can be viewed as relative in relation to another period of time or in relation to one’s potential.
Different perceptions of health may explain the nature of particular health issues and how best to intervene.
The health continuum ‘measures’ a person’s health at any one moment in time.
Out health status changes in relation to our circumstances.
The public health approach looks to develop solutions to social health problems.
Media can impact on a person’s health in a positive and/or negative way.
Most young Australians rate their health from good to excellent. However, some other groups of Australians experience poorer health.
Education provides young people with knowledge, understanding and skills about health.
What influences the health of individuals?
The determinants of health include individual, socio-cultural, socio-economic and environmental factors.
Many factors influence the health of individuals and these factors can either protect health or place it as risk.
Some determinants can be modified, such as where one lives, while others cannot, such as age.
Health is socially constructed.
Most Australians have experiences improving standards of health; however, there exists a large gap between the rich and the poor.
The conceptual framework of health illustrates how one group of determinants can influence and determine the nature of another group of determinants.
Individual factors that influence health include genetics and knowledge, skills and attitudes.
Socio-cultural factors that influence health include family, peers, media, religion and