Wellness Concept: A Comprehensive Overview
The concept of wellness has been gaining considerable traction in recent years, as its importance in achieving optimal physical and mental health has become increasingly recognized. Wellness is a multi-faceted concept, which encompasses multiple dimensions of health and wellbeing. This article provides a comprehensive overview of the wellness concept, including its definition, components, and the evidence supporting its importance for overall health and wellbeing.
Definition
Wellness is a holistic concept, which is commonly defined as a state of physical, mental, and social wellbeing (Weyers, Nieuwenhuijsen, & van den Berg, 2017). This definition highlights the fact that wellness is more than just the absence of illness or disease, and is instead a state of optimal health and wellbeing. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines wellness as a “state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being, not merely the absence of disease or infirmity” (WHO, 2018). This definition highlights the fact that wellness encompasses more than just physical health, and includes mental and social wellbeing as well.
Components
Wellness is a multi-faceted concept, which encompasses many different dimensions of health and wellbeing. The most common model for conceptualizing wellness is the six-dimension model, which includes the physical, emotional, social, intellectual, spiritual, and environmental dimensions (Niederhauser, Brintnall-Peterson, & Nelson, 2017). Each dimension is linked to different aspects of health and wellbeing, as outlined in Table 1.
Table 1: Dimensions of Wellness
Dimension Description
Physical Overall physical health, including physical activity, nutrition, and sleep
Emotional The ability to manage stress and emotions effectively
Social Connection to other people and the ability to form meaningful relationships
Intellectual The ability to engage in learning activities and use knowledge in meaningful ways
Spiritual Connection to a higher power, sense of purpose, and mindfulness
Environmental Connection to the natural environment and ability to use natural resources responsibly
Source: Niederhauser et al. (2017)
Evidence Supporting Wellness
There is a growing body of evidence supporting the importance of achieving wellness for overall health and wellbeing. Studies have found that a higher level of wellness is associated with lower levels of stress, improved cognitive functioning, and better physical health (Weyers et al., 2017). Additionally, research has found that engaging in activities to promote wellness can lead to positive outcomes, such as improved self-efficacy and satisfaction with life (Doherty, 2019). Furthermore, studies have demonstrated that wellness can be promoted through lifestyle interventions, such as engaging in physical activity, eating a balanced diet, and getting adequate rest, as well as engaging in activities to promote emotional and social wellbeing (Doherty, 2019).
Conclusion
Wellness is an important concept for promoting optimal health and wellbeing. It is a holistic concept, which encompasses multiple dimensions of health and wellbeing. There is a growing body of evidence to support the importance of achieving wellness, with studies finding that it is associated with improved physical and mental health, as well as better quality of life.
References
Doherty, G. (2019). The wellness concept: An integrative review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(12), 2197. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16122197
Niederhauser, D. S., Brintnall-Peterson, M., & Nelson, K. (2017). The wellness wheel: A conceptual approach to promoting well-being. Nurse Education Perspectives, 38(2), 62–65.
Weyers, S., Nieuwenhuijsen, M. J., & van den Berg, P. (2017). Physical activity, physical fitness, and wellness. In J. P. McKenna & J. T. Moran (Eds.), Physical activity and health (pp. 6–19). London: Elsevier.
World Health Organization. (2018). What is health? Retrieved from https://www.who.int/about/what-we-do/health