THEME IA HEALTH-PROMOTING LIFESTYLE

Professor Karin C Ringsberg, Nordic School of Public Health NHV, has had the main responsibility for designing the theme in cooperation

with Research student Hrafnhildur Gunnarsdóttir.

Purpose

Theme I aims to enable participants to increase their knowledge and gain an understanding of the link between health and lifestyle, and to relate this to their own lifestyle and that of their child and family.

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Theme I is divided into five areas of discussion

1. Determinants of health: A discussion of the factors that govern our health and lifestyle.

2. Working in a health-promoting way: A discussion of the difference between promotional health care and preventive health care as they apply to work.

3. What is your state of health? A discussion of the state of health and most common lifestyle diseases of adults and children in the Nordic region.

4. Health – more than just the absence of disease: A discussion about a holistic, health-promoting, salutogenic approach to health.

5. New themes to work on in the Lifestyle Workshop: The group prepares its strategy for its future work together.

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Figure 1. Determinants of health, WHO (2012)

 The WHO divides the determinants of health as follows:

• Social and economic factors

• Factors relating to the physical environment

• Factors relating to individual traits and behaviour

(factors).

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Figure 2. Determinants of health, Dahlgren & Whitehead (1991)

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Discussion issues

• What do you think of this way of classifying the determinants of health?

• Which “layers” do you believe you can influence?

• How can you influence these?

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Figure 3. Lifestyle and interacting factors

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Discussion issues

• Which factors do you think influence you and your family’s lifestyle choices most?

• Give thought to the lifestyle of your family. Can anything be changed? Share your experiences.

• Do you think you have enough knowledge to make the right decision on how to live a healthy lifestyle?

• If not, how could you gain this knowledge – and where from?

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Figure 4. The WHO’s definition of health promotion

“The process of enabling people to increase control over, and to improve, their health.” (Ottawa Charter 1986).

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Discussion issues

• Which factors affect the health and lifestyle of you, your child and the rest of your family?

• Which factors can you influence to promote your health?

• Discuss how you can approach this in practical terms.

• Do you get together as a family with your children to discuss health issues, such as how to stay healthy by eating a good diet and being physically active?

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Table 1. The proportion of parents in the Nordic countries who discuss health and health-promoting activities with their children, divided into the age groups 2–6 years and 2–17 years.

Source: NordChild 2011

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Figure 5. Developments in health in society in the past decadeKC Ringsberg

Discussion issues

• What do you think has led to these developments?

• What can we do together to reverse the trend?

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Figure 6. Healthy lifestyle choices

Health improves and the disease burden from lifestyle diseases decreases

Children make their own healthy lifestyle choices as adults

Healthy lifestyle choices during a child’s upbringing

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Issue for discussion

• What are your thoughts about the connection described in Figure 6?

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Table 2. The proportion of healthy children in the Nordic countries, divided into the age groups 2–6 years and 2–17 years.

Source: NordChild 2011

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Table 3. The proportion of children in the Nordic countries with psychosomatic problems, divided into the age groups 2–6 years and 2–17 years.

Source: NordChild 2011

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Table 4. The proportion of overweight children in the Nordic countries, divided into the age groups 2–6 years and 2–17 years.

Source: NordChild 2011

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Discussion issues

• Has your child complained of stomach ache, hadache, insomnia or similar problems?

• If so, when does the child tend to do this?

• How do you think being overweight affects a child?

• Are there differences between boys and girls when it comes to health/ill-health?

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Figure 7. The WHO’s definition of health

Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.

WHO 1948

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Discussion issues

• Discuss the WHO’s definition of health.• Discuss what it means for each of you to have

your health.• Name some risk factors and discuss how these

can lead to ill-health.• Name some health factors and discuss how these

can promote good health.• Discuss whether there are differences between

the sexes when it comes to health/ill-health.

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Figure 8. Salutogenesis

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Sense of Coherence (SOC)

Figure 9. Sense of coherence (Antonovsky 1991)

Comprehensibility Finding life to be comprehensible and predictable; being able to understand what is happening in your life, and why. Manageability Finding life to be manageable; being able to get through everyday difficulties in a constructive way; having resources at your disposal. Meaningfulness Finding that life is full of meaning.

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Discussion issues

• Discuss Antonovsky’s ideas about health.

• Can you have various degrees of health?

• Can you be ill yet still have your health?

• Try to find specific examples to use to discuss SOC.

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Figure 10. Players around the childKC Ringsberg

New themes to work on in the Lifestyle Workshop

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