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Debora Jeong
Mrs. ODowd
Anatomy/Physiology
5 March 2015
Wellness

Wellness is the state of being in good physical and mental health. Many people define
wellness by how skinny they are or arent. However, weight and ones skinniness can be very
unreliable sources in determining someones wellbeing. Good physical health is not dependent
on weight precisely. Good physical health is affected by many different components: diet,
exercise, weight, fat percentage, age, sex, etc. Mental health is the healthy state of mind.
Although it is possible for one to be mentally healthy without being physically healthy, those two
are usually a lot more related than people assume. For example, consistent, good exercise not
only increases physical health but affects mental health as endorphins are released in the brain
and the feel good hormone is released to make us literally feel good. Also, being physically fit
can be a major confidence booster which affects mental health tremendously. Therefore,
wellness is not as simple as people make it seem, and it is definitely not defined by the number
on the scale.
In Supersize Me, the atrocity of fast food (specifically McDonalds) and peoples lack of
knowledge about nutrition is revealed. This revelation is not surprising in and of itself, but the
results of eating such poor food are more shocking. Supersize Me opened many peoples eyes to
what our society is consuming on a regular basis and how we are suffering from the poor
decisions we make. The majority of people dont understand what wellness is. The documentary

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talks about an unfortunate truth: people want to lose weight, and will try every method possible
except for exercise or a lifestyle change of diet. I learned that mental health affects physical
health greatly. The obese girl who was bullied because of her weight talks about how hard it is
for her to lose weight. I was shocked because I thought that people knew that it would take a lot
more than what they were currently doing to lose a lot of weight. The amount of people who are
unsatisfied with their bodies or health and do close to nothing about it and still indulge in their
favorite fast food shocked me. I learned that this was a mental problem. They are not mentally
motivated and determined to get their life in the direction they want. This lack of mental stamina
results in a physical and more detrimental outcome: diseases related to weight gain and poor
diets are found everywhere.
To me, exercise and diet affect my overall wellness a lot. My diet seems to be secondary.
Although I dont consider myself a health nut, I dont eat a lot of junk or fast food. Most of my
diet consists of traditional, Korean food that my mom makes at home. Of course, my diet can be
improved in many, many ways. However, due to my somewhat unchanging, consistent, Korean
diet, exercise seems to affect my wellness more greatly. When I am in season and exercise 2-3
hours a day, my body is more physically tired but I can feel that it is getting stronger. Exercise
makes me happy naturally and also improves my self-esteem. This is like a positive feedback
loop. The more I exercise, the better I feel. The better I feel, the more I exercise.
In our society, wellness starts with the person. The person must make that decision to eat
less of the food they know is not food for her or him. Obviously, there is a lack of education and
knowledge in that area. Many people dont really know what nutrients they need. They simply
eat what tastes good. The modern health care advocates more money for health care, equal
insurances, and the like, but the real problem lies elsewhere. Even if we, as a society, pour out

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money into health care so that everyone is covered for whatever issue they have, this does not
truly cure the individual. Yes, they have a larger safety net. However, uneducated, undisciplined
people will continue to be that way unless there is a radical change in our health care system.
Perhaps the large amounts of money spent on health care which addresses issues that have
already occurred should be redirected to address the problems before they erupt. Given, this is
not easy. It is hard to determine how great of an impact education and the like will have on
suffering people. Truly, more education and fitness programs will help prevent the effects of
carelessness. But, this is not the underlying issue. The issue starts with the individuals own
motivation and discipline. Although it is true there is a lack of education of wellness, most
people have a general sense of what is good or what is bad for their bodies. Most people know
that greasy fries isnt the better option compared to celery sticks. However, people choose the
former. Why? Well, for one there is a lack of knowledge. But more seriously, there is a lack of
self-control. Usually, self-control is not something that can be taught in fitness programs. Selfcontrol is fostered and integrated when we are young. However, as a society, it is difficult to
integrate self-control. Therefore it is important to take more tangible strides in solving these
issues.
Proactive and retroactive inhibition discusses the different ways we learn something.
Proactive learning is learning before something occurs. This is also called preventative learning.
Retroactive learning is learning after something occurs. This is about learning something after
the consequences are already unleashed. Many programs and health care targeted retroactive
learning. After the individuals were physically and mentally very sick, health care plans helped
with hospitalization, surgeries, etc., and wellness programs helped with exercise and diet.
However, the proactive learning promotes a different take on wellness. People should be taught

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about diet and exercise before they are sick so that we can prevent maladies and hardships as a
society. The affordable care act talks about the limits placed on employers to use wellness
programs to encourage healthy behavior without discriminating against employees based on
health. The wellness programs try to implement retroactive inhibition so that the individuals can
learn the new material and hopefully live a healthier life. These individuals are placed in
programs if they are struggling with weight and diseases related to that. Companies, not as often,
place their individuals if they are not already in some dire situation.
Some practical solutions that I could actually implement in my life to impact my
wellness: eat at least 5 servings of vegetables and fruits, eat out only once a week, exercise daily,
stretch, and stay away from junk food (or limit amount of junk food). For my family, I would say
we should not eat out as much as we do, and try to eat less carbs (mainly rice). All coffee should
be consumed black. For my parents, I would definitely encourage them to exercise at least 3-4
times a week regardless of their very busy schedules. Wellness is holistic; it is a combination of
many things including exercise and diet. In my family, there are many subtle diet changes and
increase in exercise that would benefit our wellness. However, most importantly, there must be
encouragement and love to help one another be self-controlled and knowledgeable in all areas of
our lives, promoting wellness and consistency.

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Work Cited

"What Is Wellness? - UC Davis SHCS." What Is Wellness? - UC Davis SHCS. SHCS, n.d. Web.
05 Mar. 2015.
"AFFORDABLECAREACT." Interaction of the Retroactivity of Surcharges and HIPAA
Wellness Rules on H&W Services. Ceridian HCM, n.d. Web. 05 Mar. 2015.
Kendler, Howard H. "Retroactive and Proactive Inhibition." Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 05 Mar. 2015.