Bok, S. (2017). Who definition of health, rethinking the. International Encyclopedia of Public Health, 417–423. https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-0-12-803678-5.00494-x

• This paper challenges the WHO definition of health whether it is still relevant to today as an operational definition. 

​

Bradley, K. L., Goetz, T., & Viswanathan, S. (2018). Toward a contemporary definition of health. Military Medicine, 183(suppl_3), 204–207. https://doi.org/10.1093/milmed/usy213

• This paper challenges the WHO definition of health where it is described as a "state". They proposed that health is not static rather it is dynamic and disease and disability often do co-exist with wellness.

​

Fallon, C. K., & Karlawish, J. (2019, July 17). It's time to change the definition of 'health'. STAT. Retrieved February 6, 2022, from https://www.statnews.com/2019/07/17/change-definition-health/

• ​This article shares an opinion towards WHO definition of health, in which the authors suggested for a more contemporary approach to health where aspects of disease management is included. It advocates for a more holistic definition that is applicable across different segments of the life course.

​

Government of Canada (n.d.). Social determinants of health and health inequalities. Retrieved January 20, 2022, from https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/health-promotion/population-health/what-determines-health.html

• This website contains detailed information on the social determinants of health and health inequities. Strategies and reduction efforts are also outlined to address health inequality issues in Canada.

​

Huber, M. (2011). Health: How should we define it? British Medical Journal, 343,(7817), 235-237. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.d4163

• This article outlines the limitations of WHO definition of health. This article basically challenges the emphasis on health as  complete physical well-being rather health is the ability to adapt and self-manage during times of social, physical, and emotional challenges.

​

Jadad, A. R., & O'Grady, L. (2008). How should health be defined? BMJ, 337(dec10 1). https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.a2900

• This commentary emphasizes that the essence of health cannot be captured in a single definition. Health is complex and like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder.

​

Leonardi, F. (2018). The definition of Health: Towards New Perspectives. International Journal of Health Services, 48(4), 735–748. https://doi.org/10.1177/0020731418782653

• This paper suggests that in order to maintain a working definition of health, it should have at least nine features that was discussed. The best definition of health does not exist rather it depends on the scope of application and could be in many different forms.

​

Raphael, D. (2012). Educating the Canadian public about the social determinants of health: The time for local public health action is now! Global Health Promotion, 19(3), 54–59. https://doi.org/10.1177/1757975912453847

• This commentary addresses the issue of lack of public education on Social Determinants of Health in Canada. The author pushes for more community education and awareness campaign at all levels.

​

Raphael, D., Curry-Stevens, A., & Bryant, T. (2008). Barriers to addressing the social determinants of health: Insights from the Canadian experience. Health Policy, 88(2), 222–235. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healthpol.2008.03.015

• According to this article, supports in addressing social determinants of health remains lacking in Canada. Some of the reasons it exists include dominance of positivist approaches to health sciences, ideology of individualism and more.

​

Shilton, T., Sparks, M., McQueen, D., Lamarre, M.-C., & Jackson, S. (2011). Proposal for new definition of health. BMJ, 343(aug23 4), d5359–d5359. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.d5359

• This paper proposes a new definition of health and challenges the existing ones. The proposed definition shifts from self-management to changes in policies and environments.

​

World Health Organization (2020, June 30). Fast facts of health inequities [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/NwnhWJUsUnY

• This 4-minute video looks at what health inequities are and provides examples. This outlines the significant social economic costs of health inequities both to individuals and the society.

​

World Health Organization (n.d.). Social determinants of health. Retrieved February 9, 2022, from https://www.who.int/health-topics/social-determinants-of-health#tab=tab_1

• The WHO website contains links to documents to help gain better understanding on Social Determinants of Health and Health equity. This is a great resource for health professionals and health promoters to follow up-to-date health policies.

​

World Health Organization. (2020). Basic documents, 49th Edition. World Health Organization. Retrieved February 6, 2022, from https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/339554

• This document contains information on the WHO's historical definition of health.