It is most important principle of health education . If the health education topic is of no interest to the people , they will not listen to it. The health educator should identify the “felt needs” of the people , i.e. those needs the people feel for themselves and the prepare a programme that they can actively participate in to make it successful .

1. Principal of health education
and its content
Presented by-
Dr.Himanshu Gorawat
Dental surgeon

2. Content-
Principal of health education-
1. interest
2. participation
3. Comprehension
4. Motivation
5. Reinforcement
6. Known to unknown
7. Learning by doing
8. Soil, seed & sower
9. Community leaders
10. Good human relations
Contents of health education-
1. Human biology
2. Nutrition
3. Hygiene
4. Family health care
5. Control of communicable & noncommunicable diseases
6. Mental health
7. Prevention of accidents
8. Use of health services

3. 1. interest
2. participation
3. Comprehension
4. Motivation
5. Reinforcement
6. Known to unknown
7. Learning by doing
8. Soil, seed & sower
9. Community leaders
10. Good human relations
Principal of health education

4. Interest-
It is most important principle of health education . If the health education topic is of no
interest to the people , they will not listen to it. The health educator should identify the
“felt needs” of the people , i.e. those needs the people feel for themselves and the
prepare a programme that they can actively participate in to make it successful .
Comprehension-
This is the principle that refers to the level of understanding and the level of
literacy of the people who receives the health education . The health educator
should first of determine the level literacy and understanding of the audience and
act accordingly . The language used for communication should be understandable
to the audience.
participation –
After interest of the people , the next principle is participation . The health educator
should encourage people to participate in health education programmes . Once the
people are given a chance to take part in the programme. Certain methods like group
discussions , panel discussions etc. provide opportunities for people s participation.
Motivation-
Motivation can be defined as “the fundamental desire for learning in an individual”.
Motives in life are two types-
 Primary motivation
 Secondary motivation

5.  Primary motivation- in life are inborn desires and are forces, which
drives an individual into action. Food , clothing and housing are
examples of primary motives.
 Secondary motivation- are desires that are results of outside forces.
Examples for secondary motives are gifts , love , a word of praise,
rewards etc.
Reinforcement- this is the principle that refers to the repetition needed in
health education . It is not possible for the people to learn new things in a short period
of time . So , repetition is a good idea. This can be done at regular intervals and it helps
people to understand new idea or practices better . This principle can be called as a
“booster dose” in health education.
Known to unknown- this is an important principle of health education
where the health educator has to start with what the people already know and then give
them the new knowledge. Before the health education programme starts, the health
educator has to find out how much the people know about that particular programme.
The existing knowledge of the people can be used as the basic step upon which the new
knowledge of the people can be used as the basic step upon which the new knowledge
can be placed . The process of taking the people from what they know to what they do
not know is a long one and results will take a long time.

6. Learning by doing- just by listening to new ideas or seeing new
things , it might be difficult to implement them . If the learning process is
accompanied by doing the new things , it is better instilled in the minds of the
people . This principle is based on the famous Chinese proverb “ if I hear , I forget ;
if I see, I remember ; if do , I know “.
Soil, seed & sower- these three from the important components of
any health education programme . All the components are interdependent and result
in dynamic interaction . The people to whom health education is given can be
compared to the soil , the health facts to be given can be compared to the seeds and
the media used to transmit the facts can be compared to the sower. For any health
education programme to be successful , all the three element should be carefully
and satisfactorily selected.
Community leaders- Community leaders play an important role in
health education. The leaders can be used to reach the people of the and to
convince them about the need for health education . The leader can also be used to
educate the people , as they will have a rapport and familiarities with the people of
their community . The leader should have an understating of the needs of the
community, and advise and guided them and also should be able to answer all their
doubts and quell their fears.

7. Good human relations-
 This principle states that the health educator should have good personal qualities
and should be able to maintain friendly relations with the people. The health
educator should have a kind and sympathetic attitude towards the people and
should always be helpful to them in clarifying their doubts or repeating what is
new to them .

8. 1. principle of cumulative learning-
2. principle of multiple target-
3. principle of aggregating educational target-
4. principle of participation-
5. principle of situational specificity-
6. principle of intermediate target-
7. principle of multiple methods-
8. principle of diversity-
9. principle of health promotion-
10.principle of administration-
11.the media for communication-
Green and Anderson have outlined principles
for health education which are as follows:

9.  Human biology
 Nutrition
 Hygiene
 Family health care
 Control of communicable & noncommunicable diseases
 Mental health
 Prevention of accidents
 Use of health services
Contents of health education

10.  Human biology-
Teaching of human biology starts from the kinder garten itself. The children are
taught about the parts of human body, and their functions . They are also taught the
importance of good health and methods to keep physically fit. Teaching is also
directed towards the need for exercise, adequate rest and sleep information is also
provided about the adverse habits like smoking , use of alcohol , methods of first-
aid etc.
 Nutrition-
The eight WHO expert committee on nutrition stated that “education in nutrition is a major
strategic method for the prevention of malnutrition”. The people should be taught about the
nutrient value of foodstuffs , their methods of preparation and the methods of storage. The
main aim of including nutrition as a content of health education is to help people choose
optimum and balanced diets, which contain all the necessary nutrient, for optimal health.
 Hygiene-
This constitutes another important content of health education. The people are
taught about the important of hygiene and methods of marinating hygiene . The
teaching of hygiene has two aspects-

11.  personal hygiene – the aim is to promote good standard of
personal cleanliness within the surroundings where the people live.
Measure of basic hygiene are taught here lie bathing , washing
,grooming etc.
 Environmental hygiene- this comprises of two aspects – domestic and
community.
the domestic hygiene includes keeping the house and its
surrounding clean , proper ventilation , adequate light and fresh air , proper disposal of
waste materials avoidance of pests, insects etc.
Community hygiene includes the care of the surroundings ensuring proper garbage
disposal adequate sewage and drainage.
 Family health care- The people have to be taught about the importance of
family health care . The main aim here is to strengthen and improve the health of the
family as a unit rather than as an individual . Current family health care programmes
are getting widespread attention especially in the filed of maternal and child health
care , family planning , immunization , nutrition and other health related activities.

12.  Control of communicable & noncommunicable
diseases- people have to be taught about the widespread communicable and
non- communicable disease. The aim is to provide elementary knowledge about
the nature of the diseases and methods of preventing them . They have to be
encouraged to participate in disease control programmes so that they can be
better understand disease prevention , common signs and symptoms of disease
thereby promoting health .
 Mental health- psychological problems like depression neurosis , mental
anxiety and emotional disturbance are found to be increasing ,. The aim in
including mental health as a content of health education is to provide basic
knowledge of common psychological ailments, its detection , methods of
prevention and treatment . This also helps to remove prejudices and
misconceptions [prevalent in both the dental profession and populace.
 Prevention of accidents – accident have become a major feature of
modern human life. The people have to be taught about basic safety rules and
prevent. Common accidents, which takes place in their homes, in heir work
place or on the road . Health education programmes can be conducted on safety
measure to be adopted in factories , following proper traffic rules, prevention of
fire etc.

13.  Use of health services- this is one of the main aims of health
education. The people have to be informed about the various health services and
preventive programmes available to them . They have to be educated on the
proper use of these services. The community should always be encouraged to
participate in any health education programmes and preventive programmes.

14.  Reference-
Essential of preventive and community dentistry – soben peter (3rd
edition)