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Custom Writing Services How to Write a Research Paper Research Paper Topics Research Paper Examples Order Health Research iResearchNet Health: Definition and Concepts Health etymologically means being whole. Ancient philosophies describe health as a balance between qualities. Hippocrates’ view on health, as a balanced mixture of four humors, remained dominant till the sixteenth century. Aristotle stressed development of eudaimonia . From the sixteenth century the biomedical view emerged among physicians, whereas philosophers still stressed the larger context. The World Wars of the twentieth century stimulated the creation of international organizations on health, and the UN preparations led to the WHO. The minutes of these preparations express the idealism with which the WHO was established, as expressed in the WHO definition of health. The WHO aims at monitoring, so a family of classifications was designed, first mainly on diseases, later on functions. The WHO definition met criticism for its absoluteness and being static, and different definitions were proposed by physicians as well as philosophers. Three components are consistent in these proposals: capacity to perform, individual fulfillment, and relation to the social environment. Etymology Etymologically the English word ‘health’ means wholeness, being whole, complete, sound and well. To ‘heal’ literally means to make whole. Both words go back to the old English word ‘hal’ and the old German word ‘heil.’ The ancient Greek word for health was ‘euexia,’ which means to be in a good condition. Historical Definitions of Health Ever since human documentation existed, expressions are found where man differentiates between human states of well-being and ‘illnesses,’ the latter considered to be abnormal, undesirable and to be healed, if possible. In different ancient philosophies (e.g., Chinese, Indian, Egyptian, or Greek) concepts of illnesses and a state of ‘good health’ are described, and also the ways how man can achieve good health (Lindeboom, 1982). In these concepts, good health is conceptualized as a state of balance between different ‘elements,’ which represent different qualities, e.g., the five elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, and water) and the Yin and Yang qualities in Chinese philosophy (Taoism), or the four humors in Greek medicine (black and yellow bile, phlegm, and blood), which originated from knowledge of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. Health is described to be achievable and influenced by lifestyle habits and in certain circumstances, if fate allows, to be influenced by god(s), as mediated by priests in temples. ‘Hygeia’ was the name of the goddess of health in ancient Greece, the daughter of Asclepius , who represented a good way of living. Physicians and Philosophers Over the course of history, physicians as well as philosophers have developed views on the nature of health. Hippocrates (approximately 460–370 BC) (London, 1984), is still considered to be ‘the father of Western medicine,’ as he was the first to emphasize the importance of a good physical examination of the patient; he created a new paradigm, discriminating in humans four humors: black bile (melan chole), yellow bile (chole), phlegm (phlegma), and blood (haima), each corresponding to one of the traditional four elements and temperaments. A healthy situation was the balance between the four humors, and Hippocrates considered diet to be the most influential lifestyle factor in changing the relative proportions between the four, in addition to influences from climate, winds, quality of the water, and the soil. Historically even more influential Greek-Roman doctor Galen (131–216) followed and refined the teachings of Hippocrates and described six lifestyle factors, ‘res non naturalia,’ which should be in balance in order to maintain health: food and drink (cibus et potus), sleep and being awake (somnus et vigilia), light and air (aer), secretions and excretions (secreta et excreta), work and relaxation (motus et quies), and emotions (affectus animi). The ‘father of Western philosophy,’ Aristotle (384–322 BC) does not discuss ‘health’ as such, but states that extremes in bodily condition should be avoided and maintaining a proper balance (the mean) is a virtue (Osborne, 2011). Yet, in his ethics he considers ‘eudaimonia’ or well-being to be the final goal and good for man. Eudaimonia is an important concept as it is rediscovered in modern views on health. Eudaimonia literally means ‘the state of having a good indwelling spirit, a good genius’; in modern translations, it is described as ‘happiness’ or ‘personal well-being.’ Eudaimonia is not a static state but a continuous process of development, to fulfill one’s potentials and to flourish. This implies self-realization, by which man achieves this happiness and personal well-being. These views of Hippocrates, Galen, and Aristotle, about the human potential to be in a state of balance and the virtue of developing oneself, remained highly influential in Western medicine and thinking over fifteen centuries. From the Sixteenth Century – A New Paradigm Dawns in Medicine The Physicians’ View A different way of interpreting human health and disease started emerging in medicine when Vesalius (1543) published his studies on the anatomy of the human body. These were based on his own observations by the dissection of bodies, which was considered sacrilege until then. A century later William Harvey (1628) described the system of blood circulation, which was until then thought to be a tidal movement, like ebb and flow. The Galenic humoralism was definitely displaced in 1858, when Rudolph Virchow published his theory on cellular pathology (Virchow, 1858, 1862). In the same period, Semmelweiss discovered the protective effect of disinfective measures against deathly puerperal fever; soon thereafter Pasteur described the existence of bacteria, which he could see in the microscope, and the ways to disarm these (e.g., by pasteurization). From then the paradigms of cell physiology, microbiology, and pathological anatomy became the dominant views in medicine. Diseases were no longer understood as caused by misbalances of qualities, but were to be searched and understood in the physical body, in organs, in cells and in microbes, and should be treated there. Health became the absence of disease (Shorter, 2009). Parallel to this transition in medical thinking, public health developed in the fast growing cities due to the industrial revolution and by sanitary measures, clean water provision, garbage disposal as well as first vaccinations, infectious diseases like cholera, typhus, and small pox were eradicated and became extinct. The new medical paradigm proved to be effective. Contemporary Philosophers in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century In the period of this paradigm shift in medical thinking, philosophers still had a broader perspective on health, than as absence of disease. From Goethe (1749–1832) comes the quote What is the highest virtue on earth? To be healthy? No: to become healthy” (Hygiene Museum Dresden). Nietzsche (1844–1900) discriminated between ‘small health’ and ‘big health’ (Verduin, 1998). While ‘small health’ in his view is concerned with the daily derangements and illnesses with which doctors deal, attaining ‘big health’ means saying a full YES toward life, with all its insecurities, tragedies and finally death. Big health includes small health, but is connected to growth far beyond that. Health in the Twentieth Century and the Foundation of the WHO From the twentieth century, public health started to be organized on a national and international scale, operated by big health organizations (Borowy, 1988). In 1902, the Pan American (international) Sanitary Bureau was founded in Washington DC, while in 1907 the Office International d’Hygiène Publique followed, with headquarters in Paris. In 1913, the Rockefeller Foundation as a first nongovernmental organization was...