The right to health of millions of people worldwide is increasingly threatened. Conflicts destroy lives, causing death, pain, hunger, and mental suffering. The burning of fossil fuels simultaneously fuels the climate crisis and deprives us of the right to breathe clean air, while indoor and outdoor air pollution takes a life every 5 seconds. World Health Day each year focuses on a specific health issue affecting people worldwide. To address the challenges mentioned above, the theme of World Health Day 2024, which falls on April 7, is “My Health, My Right”. This year’s theme has been chosen to defend everyone’s right to access health services, education, and information, as well as to safe drinking water, clean air, good nutrition, high-quality housing, decent working conditions and environment, and freedom from discrimination. Therefore, this date is an excellent opportunity to look at the state of your own body objectively. It is worth considering implementing healthy habits, undergoing preventive screenings, as well as following up on diagnostics or treatment modifications for specific diseases month after month. The right to health for every individual was recognized in the WHO Constitution (1948), the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), and numerous international and regional human rights treaties. All WHO member states have ratified at least one treaty recognizing the right to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health. This means that countries have legal obligations, while recognizing that time and resources are needed for their full implementation. Some direct duties of countries include guarantees of non-discrimination and equal treatment in health. The right to health includes entitlements such as the right to control one’s health, informed consent, bodily integrity, and participation in health decision-making. It also includes freedoms such as freedom from torture, ill-treatment, and harmful practices. The right to health is closely related to and dependent on the realization of other human rights, including the right to life, food, housing, work, education, privacy, access to information, and freedom of assembly, association, and movement. It encompasses both non-discriminatory access to high-quality, timely, and appropriate health services and systems, as well as to basic health-enabling factors. When considering health as a human right, preventive and screening tests should not be overlooked. It is through these tests that a doctor, in collaboration with the patient, can detect worrying changes in the body that may indicate an ongoing disease process, as well as establish a further diagnostic pathway and, if necessary, a therapeutic pathway. The most important preventive tests worth performing regularly include: blood tests (including complete blood count, lipid profile, liver enzyme levels, glucose levels, and others – depending on the patient’s condition and symptoms); blood pressure measurement; general urine and stool tests; screening and imaging tests for women, including cytology, transvaginal ultrasound, breast ultrasound, and/or mammography; Screening and imaging tests for men, including PSA levels in the blood, prostate and testicular examinations (where indicated); examination of moles and freckles (dermoscopic examination). The type and frequency of preventive and screening tests should be determined in consultation with a doctor. Other terms for performing such tests will apply to genetically predisposed individuals who need to maintain a higher level of oncological vigilance, while others will apply to completely healthy individuals for whom preventive tests may be performed less frequently. It is also important to remember the role of self-observation and self-examination by patients – this mainly includes self-examination of the breasts and testicles, as well as observing changes in moles and freckles on the body. When it comes to preventive tests, it is also worth mentioning the control of liver enzyme levels. Many people have never had such a test, but an indication for its performance may be, for example, prolonged pharmacological treatment (which often burdens the liver). In addition, so-called “liver function tests” are helpful in assessing the health of overweight and obese individuals (especially those with abdominal obesity) and frequent alcohol drinkers. These factors can lead to alcoholic or non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, inflammation of the organ, and cirrhosis. For some patients with such problems, it may be necessary to implement pharmacological treatment or supplementation, taking into account the supply of phospholipids and choline, artichoke extract, and other substances that help reduce symptoms resulting from liver damage or dysfunction, as well as supporting the regeneration of liver cells. Health is not only the absence of disease but also harmonious and balanced functioning in every sphere of life. Quoting words attributed to Plato: “No part will be healthy until the whole is healthy.” It is true that our body, mind, and emotions are interconnected. Proper nutrition, good sleep, interpersonal relationships, and mental health are just some of the aspects that affect our overall health. Source: www.gov.pl, www.aptekaolmed.pl