What Is Health

Introduction

Health is a phrase that can have multiple meanings based on where one is coming from. As a result, its meaning can be readily muddled, and conflicts over its genuine meaning may occur. Health is a state, and not just any state, but the whole state of being well in terms of mental, emotional, and physical status. It is not only about having a healthy body or being disease-free; a stable mind and a healthy environment are also required to be classified as well. The field of medicine is simply utilized to examine a person’s health and then apply science to try to solve the problem. This paper will try to explain the meaning of health in a wider way.

Intersectionality and the Meaning of Health

While it has several definitions and is taken differently by various people, it is more than a condition or possession. Science is at most times credited to be responsible for determining illness or being unhealthy, but society also plays a role in determining the sickness of an individual as well. Intersectionality is one term that is used to explain in broad terms the meaning of health. This aspect moves beyond the preferred categories of analysis such as gender, sex, and race and contemplates on the simultaneous interactions that occur between various aspects of social identity. Also, it considers the impact of processes and systems of domination and oppression. Currently, many policymakers, practitioners, and health researchers that are connected to gender and sex now appreciate the importance of age, class, income, sexual orientation, geography, education, income, race, and ability, and they are contending with how best respond and conceptualize to the various issues of differences that exist among men and women, and most importantly, how it shapes the health of the individual involved. The answer to their question is intersectionality, which is a research weapon that they use to understand the differences. This concept outlines how the ubiquitous favoring and treatment of one’s sex as a primary and core dimension of health is currently affecting on the understanding of complexities of health outcomes and experiences (Hankivsky, 2012). Intersectionality insists that to understand the latter, one cannot overlook at age, class, income, sexual orientation, geography, education, income, race, and ability, but instead, they have to examine them together, since they are interconnected.

Sexuality and Health

Health is indeed a broad concept and cannot be explained by just one concept. Sexuality is another major issue that cannot just be overlooked when it comes to wellbeing. Currently, sexuality is a broad and influential term when one talks of health, since it is regarded in initiatives such as health policy, service delivery, and public health. International bodies such as UN are currently taking into consideration and making laws related to wellbeing basing on the issue of sexuality. World Health Organization, in particular, has taken into consideration issues of sexual discrimination, sexual education, and sexual violence and considered them as a right to having good health or determine one in an individual (Miller & Vance, 2004). Sexuality hierarchy is currently being reviewed, and suggestions are being made to add them to the various programs. In summary, health is a wide topic that carries with it many factors. As simple as the world may sound, when it comes to analyzing what it contains, one may be surprised to realize how wide it can be. Intersectionality suggests that health is composed of many attributes such as age, race, and ability that all work together to determine what is healthy. The concept of sexuality is currently fundamental in understanding the meaning of it. Health is certainly more than a condition or possession.

References

Hankivsky, O. (2012). Women’s health, men’s health, and gender and health: Implications of intersectionality. Social science & medicine, 74(11), 1712-1720.

Miller, A. M., & Vance, C. S. (2004). Sexuality, human rights, and health. Health and Human Rights, 7(2), 5-15.