Health is reffered to as man's general condition and wellbeing which includes his physical and mental state. When we say a person is healthy we imply that all his body system are functioning well. Health therefore is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity.

  This state of health depends on the relationship between man and his environment. Therefore, to be healthy man must achieve a personally satisfying and social useful life. There is an adage which says "health is wealth"  This means that if one is healthy other things will come, in fact it is often said that the wealth of the nation is health. This is so, because if  the active population of the nation is healthy, then  productivity will be enhanced for the development of the nation.

   Maintenance of good health should be seen as a matter of common interest between individuals, community, nation, and the world at large. There are many ways of maintaining good health. These are discussed below.

Personal health 

    To maintain a good personal health the following points should be given consideration.

 Good diet

     A good diet cannot be underestimated as its enhanced the body resistance against disease. With a poor diet, the body resistance against disease is lowered thereby resulting in sickness. To have a good diet, the righ quantities of carbohydrates, protein, fat and oil, vitamins and minerals should be present inthe diet.

Personal hygiene 

    Cleanliness of the body, home, clothes, water, food, and environment promote good health. Cleaning the body, example washing hands after eating or after using the toilet, taking care of fingernails, keeping the hair clean, bathing constantly all help in preventing disease.

Exercise 

   Exercise is beneficial to our health. During exercise the heart beats faster and contracts more vigorously thereby sending more blood to the body. Exercise improves the body, the appetite and the performance of the lungs. Exercise tunes the body muscles and skeleton system. In fact it's said that regular exercise helps an individual to keep alert and fit. It also help to prevent overweight or obesity.

Work and leisure 

  Laziness leads to a dull mind, poverty and hence poor health. A man should work to sustain a living. Through work man realise his own importance in life and gain a sense of satisfaction and achievement. Similarly leisure is important because it relaxes the the mind and keep boredom away. It is good to develop hobbies which can be a part of leisure.

Avoid drinking alcohol and smoking 

   These two habits are dangerous to the health, apart from the financial loss they cause. It is the major causes of lung cancer and chesty cough which are harmful to the body. It is easy to get addicted to drinking and smoking so it's better to abstain from them.

Good accommodation and housing 

    Overcrowding is bad for the health. Inthe cause of building houses, there should be plan so as to avoid overcrowding in building. This is common in towns and cities where lack of adequate town planning results in overcrowding such as we witness in slums and ghettos. Ventilation in house is very important because good ventilation ensures circulation of fresh air.
   Many buildings in rural areas lack adequate ventilation and this is why the outbreak of epidemic becomes difficult to control. 

Good sanitation 

     By this, we mean sanitation of the general environment. A clean and neat environment enhances good health. In realising the poor sanitary conditions inthe country, we should endeavour to keep our surroundings clean and tidy at all times. This will reduce the risk of contacting diseases, and also prevent disease causing germs from breeding in our environment.

          Protection of food and water

     Most sickness canbe contacted through foods and water, therefore protection for these two elements will go a long way in preventing disease,thereby improving general health. Because we can easily contact disease through eating contaminated foods, precautions should be taken to prevent Food poisoning . Only healthy animals should be slaughtered for consumption and care should be taken when drinking milk because untreated milk canbe a source of disease.
       Similarly, fruits and vegetables should be washed properly before consumption. 

Water

   In addition to drinking, water is used for cooking and baking and other domestic purposes. The provision of an adequate supply of clean drinking water is a problem in many developing countries. This problem cause people to take water directly from ponds, river, lakes or other stagnant water bodies which are infected with microorganisms. A supply of clean fresh water is therefore essential for healthy living. The supply of fresh water canbe obtained from any of the following sources, well, boreholes, pumps. 

Food 

    Foods should be well protected so as to prevent the spread of food transmitted diseases such as Typhoid, dysentery and Cholera. Health inspectors should ensure that canned imported  foods are fit for consumption before been sold. Health officers should also ensure that public eating places maintained hygienically clean environment and make sure that the food has not been adulterated.

          Public health programmes

   Because of huge amount of money spent on curative medicines, people now focus there attention on preventive medicines. Health control measures at community and international level follow the same basic principles as that of the individual and family. 
    Immunisation is one the major ways employed in preventing disease. We can say that the high survival rate of children these days is due to immunisation. It is now possible to immunise against disease such as, tuberculosis, tetanus, polio, typhoid, yellow fever, meningitis, measles, rabies and cholera. The importance of immunisation canbe appreciated if we consider the eradication of small pox which is almost non existent today. 
     Significant health programmes, such as those in Nigeria today includes, Oral Hydration Therapy (ORT) and Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI) all of which are aimed at improving the health of the people. By ORT, body fluids lost through vomiting and diarrhoea canbe replaced. ORT employs a simple method of making a solution of salt and sugar. EPI is a programme designed to control common diseases.