What is the Difference Between Health and Wellness

Health and wellness revolve around many things. It involves almost everything from our food, our activities to our mental health. Education is essential to achieve health and wellness goals. It is about learning to respect and appreciate your body and finding ways to make your lives simpler and happier and live a vibrant life.

WHAT IS HEALTH?

Health not only refers to the absence of weakness or disease, but it also involves:

  • Physical well-being
  • Social well-being
  • Mental well-being

Health care does not mean emphasizing illness only, but it also involves maintaining health, function, quality of life, and well-being. So instead of finding a cure after getting a disease, we should shift to prevention practice and reduce the risk of disease by modifying our lifestyle.

WHAT IS MEANT BY WELLNESS?

Wellness involves the practice of healthy habits on a daily routine to achieve optimal physical and mental health outcomes so that instead of just surviving, you are flourishing and enjoying your life. It is the process of becoming aware and making better choices to lead a healthy and prosperous existence.

HEALTH AND WELLNESS:

Health and wellness are often regarded as synonyms, but there is a slight difference between them. Health refers to a healthy physical body, absence of any disease, including mental and physical well-being, while wellness means to enhance your well-being and achieve the optimal health so that you can live your life to the fullest.

Optimal  Health:

What is meant by optimal health? Optimal health encompasses balanced social, mental, and physical health. It can be achieved by lifestyles changes including:

  • Self-awareness & education about healthy habits
  • Changing any behaviour that interferes with good health
  • Creating a healthy environment that promotes good health and a healthy lifestyle

Dimensions of Wellness:

So what are the dimensions of wellness? Wellness is not just about physical and mental health. It is multidimensional, and each of the seven dimensions interacts in a way to contribute to leading a quality life.

1.      Social wellness:

It refers to the ability to bond and socialize with people, establishing and maintaining a positive relationship with people around you. Social wellness adds value to your and other’s lives, creating a sense of belonging and making people happier and healthier.

2.      Spiritual wellness:

Spiritual wellness and emotional wellness go side by side as they influence each other directly. Spiritual wellness is to establish peace and harmony in our life by setting some guiding principles, beliefs, and values to give meaning and direction to our existence.

3.      Emotional wellness:

Emotional wellness is also referred to as mental wellness. Emotional health is identifying, acknowledging your true feelings, and effectively challenging your emotions. It involves understanding, accepting yourself, dealing with challenges, and coping with the obstacles of a life fearlessly.

4.      Environmental wellness:

Environmental wellness involves being aware of the nature and environment around us. It is to recognize the personal responsibility to protect the environment and its resources so that we can protect ourselves from environmental hazards. It means to lead a life that maximizes peace and harmony with the earth and reduces the harm to our environment.

5.      Occupational wellness:

Occupational wellness is the feeling of fulfilment with your chosen careers and profession while maintaining a balance between your personal and professional life. It is about selecting a rewarding domain, allows you to utilize your skills and talents, and provides a productive and healthy work environment.

6.      Intellectual wellness:

Intellectual wellness is about stimulating and creative mental activities. It involves opening your mind to different exposures, new views, and lifelong learning so that you can add meaning to your existence. It encourages you to learn and apply new ideas, improving your skills to face new challenges.

7.      Physical wellness:

Physical wellness is taking good care of your bodies so that it can function properly. Taking care of your bodies involves proper nutrition and a balanced diet. Physical fitness is not only about healthy eating habits, but adequate exercise on a daily basis is also required to lead and maintain a healthy life.

TIPS TO ACHIEVE OPTIMAL WELLNESS:

Each and every dimension of wellness plays a critical role in leading and maintaining a meaningful and successful existence. Here are some tips to achieve optimal wellness to enhance your well-being:

1.      Social wellness:

Social wellness is to maintain a positive relationship with people around us which can be achieved by:

  • Strengthening your relationship with your friends and family
  • Building a healthy relationship with people around you
  • Getting involved in different activities around you
  • Sharing your emotions and communicating your thoughts and feelings

These activities help build stronger bonds and increases motivation and productivity.

2.      Physical wellness:

Physical fitness enhances our determination, self-esteem, self-control, and gives a sense of direction to our life. Here are some tips to keep you physically fit:

  • Quit any unhealthy habits like junk eating, and smoking.
  • Get a proper amount of sleep.
  • Have a balanced diet.
  • Eat a variety of nutritional and healthy food like seasonal fruits and green vegetables.
  • Exercise for at least 30 minutes on a daily basis.
  • Participate in different fitness activities like biking and hiking.

3.      Emotional wellness:

Emotional wellness enables us to accept our feelings instead of denying them. It helps us to remain calm and deal with conflicts, maintaining a positive relationship with everyone. It can be achieved by:

  • Building a positive and optimistic attitude
  • Learn to deal with your emotions and feelings
  • Learn to accept your mistakes
  • forgive yourself
  • Try anger management and stress reliever techniques

4.      Environmental wellness:

Environmental wellness means the extent to which you care for your home planet and its resources. Some necessary should be taken to protect our land and its resources, such as:

  • Stop throwing junks everywhere
  • Reduce the use of harmful chemical
  • The rules of 3 “R” that is to reduce, reuse and recycle
  • Conserve water and other natural resources
  • Reduce unnecessary noise pollution
  • Use environmental friendly materials

5.      Occupational wellness:

Having optimal occupational wellness promotes pleasure in employment, satisfaction in life, and a positive attitude. Some tips to gain occupational health:

  • Explore a variety of options.
  • Create a vision about your future.
  • Choose a career according to your interest and personality.
  • Join a profession where you can utilize your skills and talents.
  • Work in a healthy environment that also provides financial satisfaction along with personal satisfaction.
  • Gain the knowledge and learn new skills.
  • Always be open to new changes.

6.      Intellectual wellness:

You gain intellectual wellness by opening your mind to changes and learning new skills and ideas, which will help you make better life choices. You can achieve optimal intellectual wellness by:

  • Join different courses and workshops.
  • Try to learn about different cultures and languages.
  • Interact with people who are intellectually challenging for you.
  • Read and learn.
  • Join brainstorming sessions.
  • Visit various museums and exhibitions.
  • Be creative and learn to understand and appreciate art.

7.      Spiritual wellness:

To spiritually well means developing consistency with our beliefs and values and realizing the purpose and meaning of our existence. To do so, we should:

  • Take out some time from our daily routine for meditation.
  • Spend some alone time in a quiet room where you can relax.
  • Have some time to perform yoga daily.
  • Live by your value and go with your heart.
  • Always be your true self and allow others to be who they are.
  • Be curious and explore different new things.
  • Volunteer and help others.

UNHEALTHY LIFESTYLE BEHAVIOURS:

Unhealthy lifestyles have caused a lot of issues and complications in our life. The things we eat and the way we live play a very critical role in our health and wellness. Unhealthy lifestyle behaviours include:

  • Smoking
  • Tobacco abuse
  • Inadequate sleep
  • Alcohol and drug abuse
  • High fats and low fiber diets
  • Inadequate consumption of water
  • Sedentary lifestyle
  • Overeating
  • Skipping meals
  • Excessive consumption of sodium
  • Unhygienic habits

ISSUES DUE TO UNHEALTHY LIFESTYLE BEHAVIOURS:

An unhealthy lifestyle is the main reason for hypertension, metabolic and cardiovascular diseases.

  • According to research, about 95% of the total world’s population suffers from health problems, and more than one-third of them have over five diseases.

These behaviours may lead to chronic diseases and are the leading cause of premature death. Unhealthy lifestyle behaviours lead to many immediate, long-term mental and physical issues and diseases like:

  • Obesity or overweight is the most common issue globally and is the basic cause of many serious ailments.
  • Depression and anxiety
  • High blood pressure
  • High cholesterol
  • Diabetes
  • Neck and back problems
  • Stroke
  • Heart problem
  • Joint problems
  • Cancers

IMPORTANCE OF HEALTH AND WELLNESS AND HOW DOES IT AFFECT OUR LIFE?

Health and wellness are achieved by a better change in lifestyle. It is essential as it saves us many illnesses and enhances our lifestyle so that we are living a less complicated and stress-free lifestyle. It helps us develop positive interactions with other people as our lifestyle significantly affects our actions and emotions and how we react in different situations.  So we should find ways to achieve and maintain proper health and wellness.

WAYS TO MAINTAIN HEALTH AND WELLNESS:

To maintain optimal health and wellness, healthy habits should be practiced on a daily basis.  You can achieve optimal health and wellness by making healthy choices in your routine. Start by making small changes at a time. Here are some suggestions for you:

Personal hygiene:

Taking proper care of your personal hygiene is the simplest step towards limiting diseases. Wash your hands as many times as you can throughout the day. Though using soap and water is the most effective way to get rid of germs, still you should always carry alcohol-based sanitizer in case of non-availability of soap or water.

Avoid unhealthy habits:

Try to cut off unhealthy habits like smoking and alcohol consumption. Excessive liquor leads to numerous and long term ailments. Tobacco has infinite reasons to be considered harmful and is one of the leading causes of lung cancer.

Stay socially connected:

Don’t isolate yourself! Connect with your friends, family, loved ones, and different people around you. No matter how busy you are, always take some time out for your friends and loved ones.

Call someone you care about or who cares about you daily; it is a great way to catch up and bond with people who matter a lot to you.

Proper exercise:

Exercising for even 30 minutes on a daily routine can have a tremendous positive impact on your overall well-being and boost up your mood to a great extent. You can start by a 20-30 minutes brisk walk and slowly increasing the intensity of your exercises daily. You can choose physical activities that you enjoy. Do opt for the stairs instead of the elevator whenever possible.

Stay hydrated:

Consume as much water as you can throughout the day. Switch to water, fresh juices, and clear and non-caffeinated drinks in place of sodas and drinks with high sugar content for your daily fluid intake. Start your day with a glass of water and opt for water-rich fruits for snacks. You should aim for 8 ounces of water per day.

Healthy and balanced diet:

Incorporate healthy eating habits into your routine. Start by making small changes like including wholesome ingredients to your diet. Add green vegetables to your meals and have seasonal fruits every day.

Always carry some fruits and veggies with you as a handy snack so that you can avoid junk food or fast food whenever you are out or on the run.

Proper sleep hygiene:

Proper sleep plays a significant role in leading a healthy life. Avoid caffeine intake at night. Indulge in calm and relaxing activities like meditation before bedtime to have a night of quality sleep.

Avoid the use of any kind of technology like smartphones, at least half an hour before sleep. Sleep and wake up early and follow the same routine every day.

Self-realization, awareness, and mindfulness :

Don’t try to suppress your feelings, thinking, or emotions. Always be ready to face your true feelings and emotions. Being fully aware of how you are feeling or what you are thinking helps you in stressful situations and leads to a successful and less complicated life. Practising mindfulness is healthy for your body as well as your mind and helps to improve your focus.

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