WHOLE HEALTH
Being healthy isn't only about biology. People now pay attention to the body's natural rhythms and cycles, and are recognizing how their habits, social relationships, and cultural narratives affect well-being too. To say health is everything in life means it's more than just the vital signs of a routine check-up.
→ Awareness is growing around how circadian rhythms and biological cycles vary by sex and age, impacting fundamental body functions like hunger, digestion, sleep, and recovery.
→ Medical institutions are embracing integrative approaches or "whole person health” frameworks.
→ The debate in the Netherlands, which led to problematic terms such as ‘schaamlippen’ (‘shame lips’) being replaced, shows that the time has come to rid language of offensive terms.
→ In several countries, social prescribing, spiritual well-being, and forest bathing have become legitimate healthcare interventions.
Pockets of the Future
Explore where this signal is already showing up
Body clocks differ: a 2025 Oregon Health & Science University study found that an out-of-sync body clock affects heart and metabolic health differently in women and men.
No more shame: the Dutch dictionary is adding “vulvalippen” (vulva lips) as an alternative to “schaamlippen” (shame lips), after years of campaigning by women’s rights groups.
Source: Dutch News: ‘No more “shame lips”: Dutch dictionary adds new word for labia,’ August 2026
Nature on prescription: England’s health service now connects patients with nature-based activities like walking groups and gardening to support mental and physical health.
Health as a whole: the US National Institutes of Health launched a five-year project to map how the body’s systems work together, rather than studying organs in isolation.
Source: NIH: ‘NIH launches landmark project on whole-person health and function,’ Sept 2025