In the spirit of understanding health, I offer the following:

WHAT IS HEALTH?

Health is metabolic efficiency. Sickness is metabolic inefficiency.
Nobody is totally healthy or totally sick. Each of us is a unique
combination of health and sickness. And each of us has a unique
combination of abilities and disabilities, both emotional and physical.

As we grow up, we learn that we are loved for our abilities but hated
for our disabilities. This happens at home, at play, at school, and at
work. Sometimes, this even happens with our doctors, especially if our
disabilities mystify them or remind them of their own disabilities.

So, we try to hide our disabilities from people and from ourselves.
This charade undermines our relationships and our self-esteem. We
learn to fear society and hate ourselves.

Self-hatred is the most debilitating sickness. It interferes with our
ability to seek and accept help. And everybody needs help. How do we
free ourselves from self-hatred?

First, we reclaim our disabilities, whether society accepts them or
not. This means that we learn to accept ourselves. Then, we cope with
our disabilities. This means that we learn to take care of ourselves.

Hugh Mann
http://organicMD.org
http://www.organicmd.org/whatishealth.html
http://www.bmj.com/cgi/eletters/330/7493/721#140864
http://www.nzma.org.nz/journal/119-1242/2243/