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Health and well-being
The World Health Organisation (WHO) states that “wellbeing exists in two dimensions,
subjective and objective. It comprises an individual’s experience of their life as well as a
comparison of life circumstances with social norms and values”. Examples of life circumstance
include health, education, work, social relationships, built and natural environments, security,
civic engagement and governance, housing and work-life balance. Subjective experiences
include a person’s overall sense of wellbeing, psychological functioning and affective states1
.
• Health is one of the top things people say matters to wellbeing2
.
• Both physical health and mental health can influence wellbeing3
. Recent acute health problems
affect wellbeing most but longer-term chronic ill health also has an effect on wellbeing4
.
• The relationship between health and wellbeing is not just one-way – health influences
wellbeing and wellbeing itself influences health. There are a number of correlations between
wellbeing and physical health outcomes, improved immune system response, higher pain
tolerance, increased longevity, cardiovascular health, slower disease progression and
reproductive health (see Figure 1)5 6
.
• The effect of wellbeing on health is substantial (but variable) and comparable to other risk
factors more traditionally targeted by public health such as a healthy diet7
.
• Wellbeing and mental illness are correlated with depression and anxiety, which are associated
with low levels of wellbeing8
.
• Mental illness and wellbeing are independent dimensions; mental health is not simply the
opposite of mental illness. It is possible for someone to have a mental disorder and high levels
of wellbeing. It is also possible for someone to have low levels of wellbeing without having a
mental disorder. Most associations are only moderately altered by adjusting for severity of
mental disorder9
.
• Good health is also correlated with higher life satisfaction10.
- There is a two way relationship between wellbeing and health: health influences
wellbeing and wellbeing itself influences health - Health is one of the top things people say matters for wellbeing
- Both physical and mental health influence wellbeing, however mental health and
wellbeing are independent dimensions, mental health is not simply the opposite of
mental illness.
1
A Compendium of Factsheets: Wellbeing Across the Lifecourse
Figure 1: The two-way relationship between wellbeing and health11
• Wellbeing is a shared government objective. It can also provide a shared objective around which
to engage to deliver health benefits. For example, promoting physical activity has benefits for
health but it also has a benefit for wellbeing. In addition, strengthening social networks and time
spent socialising benefit wellbeing as well as improving mental health in particular12.