OCR Nationals double award promoting health and well being Essay

According to the above figures given in the above Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, each aspect has been given a position in order of their importance placing the most important one at the bottom. This makes it clear that everything, (regardless the level of their importance) is important to us. There are different ways to keep up the health status up to the standard such as using medication, being on healthy diet, getting enough rest and doing appropriate exercise. After having an observational research on health and its definitions, I would conclude that to keep up appropriate health we should have healthy lifestyle in terms of physical, intellectual, emotional and social aspects. Well-being As this unit is based on promoting health and well-being, it is highly important to have concerns on well-being as well. According to the World Health Organisation, well-being explains our happiness, confidence, physical condition and general outlook of our life. It is about caring ourselves and feeling good. Well-being and living healthily go hand-in-hand. It goes beyond eating a balanced diet and taking regular exercises. It is about being aware about our life and reducing the risks of diseases. Our daily routine could decide the state of our well-being. (Bib. 4)Great Britain is a multi cultural society. The culture is a way, which is followed by a group of people. They eat, dress, behave and believe in the same way. It may be unique to that particular group. It affects their way of life and therefore their health as well. It is very important that the health care sector and the organisations respect beliefs of each culture. For example, a Christian faith group, Jehovah’s Witness urge their follower’s to refuse blood transfusions. (Bib. 12) But according to medical science, blood transfusions can save a person’s life. In another instance, Muslims don’t take pork, although animal flesh is a good source of protein. Proteins are needed for the build up of our muscles. To work properly and to be physically fit, we need to have healthy muscles. Therefore this can affect their physical health. Sometimes, the people chose to be vegetarians or vegans either following their religion or for their personal beliefs. This can lead them to be lack of proteins, as meat, eggs and other animal products are good sources of proteins. As said before, protein is very important even for making hormones. This is vital for our growth. Therefore where the PIES are concerned, it is clear that not taking animal products could also affect a person’s development. Further, this can lead our intellectual development to grow less as well because a good physical health is important to have a good memory and thinking. Another example of how different cultures consider is the fasting practise of Muslims. However, it is not good for our health to get rid of meals because it has been found that this can lead to weight loss, stomach problems including ulceration, dehydration and also changes have been observed in daily lifestyle and mental-health status. (Bib. 5) Apparently, looking at our PIES it is clear from the above disorders that this can also affect both our physical and mental health. Nevertheless, as it is linked to their culture and tradition, they don’t bother much about their health. Further, covering their body by Muslim ladies could lead to vitamin D deficiency as they are not exposed enough to sunlight causing possible rickets. On the other hand, this could be positive to avoid unnecessary exposure to sunlight avoiding risks of skin cancers. So it is clear that the cultural belief and the person’s background can affect their health positively as well. Being a Buddhist, I believe it is not right taking alcohol and drugs for a healthy life. This is another example, which shows how the background of people affects their way of thinking. As different cultures and religions consider health in different ways, it is important that doctors should be aware of cultural beliefs when treating patients. According to the beliefs and places of living of a person may cause them to have less access to medical treatments. For example, a study carried out among the people living in Southern Virginia has found out that they were lacking of medical knowledge and that they distrusted the physicians. They have claimed that most of their people were obsessed and they liked to eat much but not doing exercise. Although it wasn’t said in the study report what foods they ate, I thought that they might be eating too fatty and sugary foods, as they are some causes of obesity. Further, I got to know by reading the study, that these Virginians didn’t discuss health problems with outsiders. It is also said that this may be due to the lack of medical knowledge. I thought this might prevent them from getting suitable care. As the people distrusted the specialist, they do not take medicines prescribed by them. They think that these drugs may cause addiction. In addition, according to the participants in the study, there is a lack of American-born physicians. At the same time, the people in the area were having some concerns in meeting foreign-born physicians. This cultural difference between the patient and the provider has been identified as a barrier, which prevents the patients getting medial care. (Bib. 6) I thought this to be a good example to show the effects of cultural beliefs on people and their health. In third world countries, the people might not be in good hygienic conditions such as less purified water systems, poor housing and air pollution. This could also lead to illnesses and diseases. Some other examples of how different cultures look at their health are the Chinese treatments and the way some cultures treat patients using plants and herbs found from the forests. Although people from different cultures look at health in different ways, each person’s health is alike and will be affected in the same way. Therefore, it is important that we look at it in a positive manner.