1-2 Influences On Your Health

I. Your health is affected by a number of factors over which you have no control.

1. Heredity The obvious physical traits ( hair color, eyes, shape of nose and ears). Tendencies towards specific diseases can be inherited. Basic intellectual abilities.

2. Environment The physical conditions you live in. Clean, safe, pollution free, access to medical and dental care, child immunization. There are two types of environment: Social and Cultural.

3. Social Environment People you come in daily contact with like family, friends, peers. Getting support from caring/loving individuals helps you reach out and support others. A healthful, supportive social environment helps one rise above adverse, physical conditions, (poverty). An unhealthy social environment can cause poor mental/emotional health (rejection, neglect, abuse). Peers are important to teenage social environment. Peer pressure can be positive or negative.

4. Cultural Environment This helps you understand yourself and others around you, and how do you get along. Gives you a sense of identity. Beliefs, customs, and behavior of a group ( family, ethnicity, community, nation).

II. Your behaviors, choices, and decisions you make can affect your health. You must have a great deal of control over your behavior. You can choose how you will act in your own environment. You have the ability to take positive action to protect your health despite your heredity factors.