About 90% of Americans have a poor diet, which can affect both your physical well-being and your mental health. It can cause heart problems, aggravate respiratory issues, and create depressive episodes and memory loss.

World Health Day aims to get people in shape not only in the US but across the world. Here, we’re going to talk about World Health Day, what it is, and why it matters. Read on for more information about this and the tools that healthcare professionals can use to help patients get in shape.

What Is World Health Day?

World Health Day is a global awareness day. Its aim is to inform people about health issues that impact people around the world. 

It’s celebrated on April 7th of every year. This is because the World Health Organization (WHO) was founded on April 7th.

This makes sense since World Health Day began with this United Nations (UN) agency that promotes health and assists vulnerable people with health problems across the globe. It has 194 member nation-states, so this celebration is truly an international behemoth.

National and local governments tend to promote World Health Day to their constituents. They inform people about the day, raise awareness of current health issues, and mobilize health efforts while focusing on the diseases and issues that matter most that year.

Its purpose is to keep people informed, aware, and ready to act on global health issues.

History

The celebration of World Health Day is directly correlated with the foundation of the WHO in 1948. They determined that designating a day to focus on health issues would help raise awareness about global health and its importance.

This led them to establish World Health Day in 1949. It took place that year on July 22nd and honored the 61 nations who signed the WHO charter the previous year. In 1950, it was moved to the currently-celebrated April 7th because that is the day that the WHO was founded.

The WHO tasked its 194 member states to put together events surrounding the theme of each World Heath Day. Because it’s an international event, the WHO is not directly responsible for every event and awareness campaign. However, they push those underneath them to take these matters into their own hands.

So far, this has served them well. The issues that the WHO focuses on each year are important and related to current events.

Governments can host events, talks, and gatherings seamlessly because people are already often minorly aware that these issues exist. The day aims to give them more information and inspire them to act.

Themes

Every World Health Day has its own theme, which has served people across the globe well over the years. 

In 2023, the World Health Organization is an institution 75 years old. Smallpox was eradicated in 1958 through WHO efforts before they turned their focus toward communicable diseases like HIV and AIDS. More recently, those involved with the WHO have helped to minimize the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Other years have had diverse themes related to important issues as well. 2017’s World Health Day focused on depression and mental health while 2014 focused on diseases transmitted through bug bites. Other years focused on antimicrobial resistance, healthcare infrastructure, and more.

75th Anniversary

In 2023, the theme of World Health Day is “75 years of improving public health.”

This is a special theme because the WHO is celebrating its 75th anniversary. The WHO will dedicate itself to:

• Looking back at global public health successes and advancements over the past 75 years
• Inform people about the health challenges people frequently face today
• Showcase medical advancements that can assist people with these problems
• Motivate people to educate themselves about their health as well as others’
• Discuss the projected future of healthcare in the coming years
• Help people understand how individuals can make a difference when it comes to public health

Awareness, education, and inspiring action are core purposes of every year’s World Health Day. This year, the theme is broader than others, which means that people will have the opportunity to learn more about their personal impact and how they can maximize it across multiple platforms and issues.

Why Is World Health Day Important?

World Health Day is important because it sheds light on important issues. Disease prevention, mental health, climate change, child care, and healing from communicable diseases are all objectives.

It provides people with a dedicated day to learn more about these issues. If there were no designated timeframe, people wouldn’t encounter discussions of these problems easily. This is because World Health Day brings them:

• Social media posts about health from government officials
• Social media content from influencers and celebrities that care about health issues
• Local events where they can gather and learn more about public health
• Online seminars and talks where they can gain information from their own homes
• Interactive content like videos and multimedia that spread awareness
• Physical gatherings where people can convene to discuss health and important advancements

But why is understanding public health issues so important?

At least half the global population doesn’t have coverage for essential and necessary health services. 97 million people face poverty as a result of health problems and medical bills. In many nations, people also lack the resources to treat preventable diseases.

In the US alone, only 2.7% of adults live a healthy lifestyle. This is especially jarring when you consider that the US government has access to resources to prevent and treat more health issues than other countries across the globe. World Health Day gives people the tools they need to improve their lifestyles and stresses the importance of accessible health care to governments.

Managing Patients’ Well-Being

If you’re a healthcare professional looking to improve patients’ overall health this World Health Day, it’s important that you use tools to make this easier. There is a wide range of tools that you can use to manage patient well-being, especially in the form of dietary management.

Since people who eat healthily have a lower risk of obesity, cardiovascular problems, diabetes, and even cancer, it’s important that you focus on improving people’s diets.

Diet Analysis Software

Diet analysis software provides healthcare professionals with a way to analyze and monitor patient diets. You’ll be able to see their nutrient intake each day.

The application will also let you calculate and set calorie needs with built-in formulas. You’ll also be able to look at patient exercise goals to learn more about calorie expenditure.

The technology also lets you create recalls to see what your patient is eating. You’ll be able to assess their current diet and talk with them about its impact on your health. The tool is great for short-term nutritional education because you can make data-backed suggestions with real information.

Food frequency questionnaires are also available for long-term growth. You can see how patients are altering and sticking to their diets over a longer period of time. This will let you track trends and improve overall long-term health.

Menu Creation Software

While diet analysis can help you and your patients understand the impacts of their current diet, it alone won’t be a solution to any poor habits. You need to pair it with menu software that lets you manage and adapt their diet together.

You’ll be able to create menus, see nutrient values for all menu items, and create a top-notch meal plan together. You also will have the chance to compare real menus against nutritional goals to ensure that you remain true to objectives.

You can easily edit any recipes that you create with the application’s copy feature. This will let you replicate recipes and menu items. You’ll be able to modify them, change the nutrient breakdown, scale your recipes, and make adjustments that make sense.

Using health-boosting technologies is a great way to change the way you look at health. There’s no better time to be healthier than World Health Day, so now’s a great time to kickstart new initiatives to promote health and wellness.

As a healthcare professional, this is important every day, but you can raise awareness by integrating new technologies on April 7th when everyone already has health on their minds.

Help Everyone Stay Healthy in 2023

World Health Day 2023 is approaching quickly, so there’s no time like the present to prepare. Educate others around you about this important day and learn more about events in your area. Promote them to your patients, friends, and loved ones to spread the word.

Then, invest in the top diet management technologies available to healthcare professionals. Axxya is committed to providing top-notch tools and resources to those who want to promote patient health and improve lives. Contact us to learn more about what we have to offer so that you can get started.