The definition of health is more complex than you would initially think. It’s multifaceted and all the aspects are intertwined. The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines health as a state of emotional, social and physical well-being and not just the mere absence of sickness. While this is a great starting point, it needs more depth and explanation to understand and maintain good health.
The dimensions of wellness
Health is built up of various dimensions: physical, emotional, social, environmental, intellectual and occupational health. These dimensions overlap and each one influences another. For example, if someone works out and eats healthy, then their emotional state will improve, which will lead to a better intellectual capacity. Improving one dimension will also improve others and an upward spiral may occur. On the other hand, if one dimension is ignored, other dimensions can be negatively impacted, which might result in a downward spiral. Being completely healthy is about making good decisions, not occasionally, but continuously. It’s like brushing teeth - we consistently take care of them, and that consistency should/could be present in other lifestyle choices. Of course, then a cheat day here or there won’t matter.
The modern world
In modern times our lives have become complex, with the emphasis shifting from the group to the individual. Young and old try to find meaning in self-fulfillment, careers, and relationships. Especially millennials seem to find it harder to cope with life. We have a changing environment, unhealthy foods are becoming cheaper while healthy foods are becoming more expensive, and performance pressure has never been as high. We see the effect of these changes in rising cases of obesity and coronary diseases, environmental stress and rising burnout rates worldwide. The Netherlands is a prime example of a developed country, where almost 20% of the employees have serious burnout complaints. For every five of your colleagues, one might be at the brink of a burnout!
Improve health
To be successful in this world our bodies and minds need to be in great shape, but without help it will be challenging for most people to reach it. We have stigmas about mental care, we don’t have enough knowledge about nutrition and exercise and super markets are full of unhealthy choices. Just check the breakfast aisle: almost all cereals have added sugar.
People need a balanced healthy lifestyle and a holistic approach is most suited to help improve health and wellness. All different dimensions of health need our focus to really flourish, but which health aspect should get more attention, differs per person. One needs to be actively aware about the health dimensions to find his or her personal wellness harmony and improve their health.
How Liftaware will lead to healthier, happier, more engaged and more productive employees
Liftaware, the health and wellness platform, provides the essential tools and services to make your employees healthier, happier, more engaged with their company and more productive. This will decrease absenteeism, save companies financially a lot and help attract better candidates.
Liftaware has a holistic approach by understanding that health consists of the 6 core dimensions: emotional, physical, social, environmental, occupational and intellectual health. For each of these health aspects Liftaware provides specific tools and services. Liftaware centralises these fundamental tools and services into one platform so that wellness becomes easy, fun and reachable for employees.
Please read more about how these services and tools will solve many companies' and employees’ issues regarding health and wellbeing in our upcoming blog: ‘Outsmart competition to attract more employees and decrease job turnovers, while increasing productivity ’
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