What is meant by good health? Does only physical fitness describe the health of a person?  We all know health is wealth. A healthy mind lives in a healthy body. But what are different ways to keep our bodies healthy? We have learned that taking healthy nutrition is very important for good health. But only having a balanced diet is enough for good health, or are there some other factors contributing to good health! But what are those factors? Why rest, exercise, and maintaining personal hygiene is important? To know these, read the full article.

What do you mean by Good Health, and why should we maintain it?

Good health refers to the condition of the body that describes the person’s physical, mental, social, and emotional fitness. If we eat healthily and live healthily, then our immune system can fight with different disease-causing agents. We may fall sick less. Also, we can handle different day to day stress coming along with our daily life and remain active.

Factors Contributing to Good Health

1. Balanced diet: Proper diet is very much essential to have good health. A proper diet involves an adequate and balanced intake of all the nutrients that are essential for the growth and repair of the body.
2. Hydration: The body should be hydrated all the time. We all know that 8-10 glasses of water should be taken daily.
3. Genetics: This also contributes to good health. Genetic disorders are passed on from one generation to another.
4. Environment: Clean environment is important for everyone to stay healthy.
5. Medical care: Good and advanced medical care should be available in every city to keep the country diseased-free.
6. Education: Proper education is important to keep one’s own body, and another’s body healthy. Education lets us know what should be eaten and what not. It helps us in knowing what should be done to prevent different diseases and if anyone gets the disease.
7. Social and Cultural Factors: It refers to the condition in which a person lives, which includes his home and social environment. This includes the education level, medical availability, exposure to good culture,  availability of nutritious food and clean water, etc.

Some Other Factors that Contribute to Good Health

Rest– Each and every part of our body needs rest for a definite period of time. Rest is the behaviour to give mind and body calmness. It may include moderate exercise, meditation, reclining without doing anything, listening to music, napping, etc.  Our body needs undisturbed sleep too. During sleep, we are totally sensory detached from our surroundings. This is important for our body to heal, boost the immune system, and many more. Newborn babies have almost 16 hours of sleep. With age, sleeping time decreases. A 2 yrs old child takes 11 hours of sleep, but adults need continuous 7-8 hrs of sleep for the proper functioning of the body.

Significance

Good sleep and adequate rest is required for:-
1. Proper functioning of the body
2. Better productivity
3. More concentration
4. Less weight gain
5. Stress-life
6. Lower risk of heart disease
7. Strong immune system
8. Proper functioning body repair system
9. Lower inflammation

Fig: Sleeping

Exercise- Regular physical exercise is good for everyone, especially children, adolescents, and young people. For old people, a long smooth walk is enough, but it should be regular practise. Brisk walking is recommended for adults. Different exercises include running, walking, pull-ups, weight lifting, different yoga asanas, etc.

Significance

Regular Exercise:-
1. Lowers weight
2. Improves blood circulation
3. Reduces the heart associated problems
4. Strengthen our bones and muscles
5. Improves our sleeping quality
6. Reduces the risk of many different kinds of diseases
7. Strengthen our immune system

Fig: Exercises

Personal Hygiene- Personal hygiene is most important. It includes-
a. Washing hands frequently: Before and after eating, after using toilets, after coming from outside, after touching money, etc., hands should be washed.
b. Taking a bath daily: This is one of the most important practices one should do. Daily bath keeps our skin from different kinds of germs, body odours, parasites like lice, etc.
c. Clothes should be washed daily: Special care should be given in the cleaning of undergarments and handkerchiefs.
d. Brushing teeth: Teeth should be washed twice a day. A toothpaste can keep our mouth from germs for 12 hrs. So, brushing twice is recommended by dentists. Too many sweets should not be eaten as sweets decay teeth by increasing the number of germs in teeth.
e. Eyes, ears, and nose should be cleaned regularly. Eyes can be cleaned with a clean, soft cloth and water. Sharp objects should not be put in ears for cleaning as they may injure the eardrums.
f. Sharing towels and clothes is not a good habit.
g. Nails should be cut regularly.
h. Genitals should be cleaned properly.

Significance

Personal hygiene:-
1. It keeps us germ-free.
2. It keeps us away from many diseases like cold, cough, diarrhoea, dysentery, typhoid, malaria, etc.
3. It keeps us energetic and helps in concentrating on our respective works.
4. It gives confidence.

Fig: Good Hygiene Habits

What happens if Rest, Exercise, and Personal Hygiene are ignored?

If proper rest is not taken, then there could be the following possibilities:-
1. Feeling tired all day.
2. Less concentration on work.
3. Loss of desire.
4. Less learning and memory.
5. Our thinking suffers.
6. Immune function deteriorates.
7. Stress
8. Different diseases like heart diseases, high blood pressure, high blood sugar.

If proper exercise is not done, then there could be the following possibilities:-
1. Weak muscles
2. Less active body throughout the day
3. May get obesity
4. Heart disease
5. Chances of increase in the risk of heart diseases, blood cholesterol, diabetes, etc.
6. Stress

If proper personal hygiene is not maintained, then there could be the following possibilities:-
1. Lack of confidence
2. Feel of inferiority
3. Body odour
4. Skin infections
5. Blisters
6. Tooth decay
7. Diarrhoea, dysentery
8. Many other diseases are due to parasites and worms like sleeping sickness, malaria,  filariasis, etc.

Summary

From the above discussion, we can conclude that for being healthy, not only a balanced diet, clean water, education, genetics are important factors, but personal hygiene and adequate rest play an important role in maintaining good health too. Personal hygiene refers to keeping our body clean for a germ and disease-body. Regular exercise is beneficial for everyone, which improves blood circulation. Additionally, adequate rest is very important for good and sound health. Rest should be in the form of undisturbed continuous sleep.

FAQs on Other Factors Contributing to Good Health

Q.1. Why is rest important for your body?
Ans: Rest helps in the proper functioning of the body, better productivity, more concentration, less weight gain, stress-life, etc.

Q.2. How do you maintain personal hygiene?
Ans: Personal hygiene can be maintained by washing hands frequently, taking a bath daily, brushing teeth, etc.

Q.3. Why is daily exercise important?
Ans: Daily exercise helps in lowering our body weight, improves blood circulation, reduces the heart associated problems, strengthens our bones and muscles, improves our sleeping quality, etc.

Q.4. What are the signs of poor hygiene?
Ans: Poor hygiene brings bad odour from the body and mouth. It may lead to different kinds of diseases.

Q.5. Can I exercise every day?
Ans: Yes, exercises can be done daily.

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We hope this article on Other Factors Contributing to Good Health helps you in your preparation. Do drop in your queries in the comments section if you get stuck and we will get back to you at the earliest.