Spiritual_Wellness_Holistic_Health_and_the_Practic

10 Philosophical Foundations of Health Education
CONSERVATION OF HEALTH
The nature of health is such that efforts of health education should be directed toward
conserving health. With some notable exceptions, one ’ s quality of health is seldom
better than that with which one is endowed at birth. Like a spool of thread of unknown
length it may be unwound at varying speeds. Too frequently the thread is broken and
life ends without playing out the maximum potential. Disease, stress, deprivation, dissipation,
unhygienic living, overwork, loss of sleep, and other seemingly minor factors
take their toll and unwind the spool at an accelerated rate.
Medical science may at times need to be called on to assist nature in restoring the
healthful condition of the organism. Health education can be of assistance to medical
science through the development of intelligent self - direction of health behavior, thus
conserving health and rendering less likely the need for restoring health. It is important
that health education be distinguished from the practice of medicine. We should
understand that one of the most important contributions of health education is to promote
intelligent recognition of the need for medical attention and proper selection and
use of health services.
Just as health education can result from other educational experiences, so are there
concomitants resulting from health instruction. In terms of the objectives of education,
health instruction will be recognized as making direct and significant contribution to
the objectives of health, citizenship, worthy home membership, and ethical character.
It may also contribute, but perhaps less directly, to the objectives of vocation, worthy
use of leisure time, and command of fundamental processes.
Health instruction provides countless opportunities for the liberal or cultural education.
However, we must not lose the proper perspective for health education. Its aim
is intelligent self - direction of health behavior . To the extent it is able to realize this
aim, it may be said to be successful and justifiable as an integral part of the educational
program.
Originally printed in the Journal of Health, Physical Education, Recreation, January 1960.