Resolutions Submitted to the
American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences

Health and Wellness

WHEREAS, research supports the evidence that lifestyle choices, such as smoking, lack of physical exercise, unmanaged stress, and unhealthy diet patterns, are associated with increased risk of disease and reduced quality of life over the lifespan; and

WHEREAS, lack of education coupled with conditions of poverty are strong indicators for poor health outcomes, and the cost of health care is one of the most rapidly rising costs in the United States, individuals and families are in need of resources to become empowered to create healthy lifestyle patterns that focus on wellness; and

WHEREAS, the physical, social, and emotional costs of depression, suicide, substance abuse, and violence, as presented daily in people’s lives in families, local communities, and nations, continue to depreciate the quality of life; and

WHEREAS, healthy aging relates to a lifetime of health-promoting choices to enable the benefits of a satisfying, full and productive life well into the later years; and

WHEREAS, AAFCS advocates a lifetime of healthy choices, which directly enhance the quality of life for individuals and families, and indirectly benefit the local and national community; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, that AAFCS members engage in research and education concerning the full spectrum of health, including the physical, sociological, psychological, cultural, esthetic, economic and spiritual aspects of well-being; and be it further

RESOLVED, that AAFCS accept the challenge of a more active role in creating models for lifetime assessment skills and creative intervention strategies which promote a lifetime of wellness; and be it further

RESOLVED, that AAFCS help individuals and families shift thinking from a primarily medical treatment approach to health care that focuses on a holistic, preventative approach for a lifetime of wellness; and be it further

RESOLVED, that AAFCS continue to play an advocacy role in public policy related to health, health care and wellness issues.