Photo courtesy of senior Alexis Haas

  Health is a word and aspect of society that is portrayed in many different ways, including by San Luis Obispo High School students and staff.

What does being healthy mean?

This question is something everyone has been asked at a point within their life, society’s beauty standards showing it means one thing and lifestyle experts illustrating it means something else.

What does “good health” mean? 

  Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. This can be interpreted in many different ways depending on the individual. Being healthy is defined as, in good health. 

  “Too many people define healthy as skinny. Healthy is being able to be mentally sound through moving your body,” said senior Nayah Holmes. 

  Everyone has their own unique body type and everything else that comes along with being them. Being healthy for a person may not mean they are stick thin, but could mean they eat healthy, exercise on a regular basis, and find content in who they are. A non healthy person could also be this “model image” that is looked up to but consume junk food, never workout, and be an anxious mess. 

  “To me what it means to be healthy is feeling your best both physically and mentally. I think a lot of people forget that mental health is included in being healthy along with being physically healthy,” said senior Quinn Williams. 

  Health is a word that cannot be fully defined but varies. There are also two main types of health, physical and mental. Mental health is harder to define then physical health because there are so many aspects and variables. Medical News Today simply defines physical health as “well-being involves pursuing a healthful lifestyle to decrease the risk of disease.” This is an easy baseline to understanding health. 

  So next time someone asks you “what does being healthy mean?” take some time to remind yourself it can be whatever makes you feel healthy and good about oneself.

Sources: Medicalnewstoday.com Who.int  Oxford Dictionary  health.com