NoMedication HealthSpan – Redefining Health

Lesedauer 3 Minuten

First: I have been asked repeatedly about my article on NoMedication HealthSpan in the journal “Welt der Gesundheitsversorgung.” Since I do not publish articles commissioned by others elsewhere, I have now written a new article on the subject to explain NoMedication HealthSpan—completely independent of Longevity and not in the form of a discussion with AI.

Have you ever wondered what “health” actually means? I’ve been doing that for many years—in lectures, workshops, and projects with companies, hospitals, and scientists. My first question:

“How do you define health?”

In my experience, most people—both managers and employees—are unable to clearly define health. Answers such as “When I feel good,” “When I’m at peace,” or “When I’m not sick” are understandable from a human perspective, but they’re functionally worthless.

The term “health” is often used without much thought. We wish it upon our loved ones on their birthdays, and in the same breath give them candy, alcohol, or cigarettes. It’s a contradiction that shows we don’t really know what we mean.

Why the WHO Definition Is Not Enough

Since 1948, the WHO has defined health as:

“A state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease.”

Sounds good, doesn’t it? But if you take a closer look, you’ll notice two problems:

Subjectivity: Well-being is individual and can even be achieved temporarily through alcohol, drugs, or medication.
Focus on Symptoms: Health is often defined by the absence of symptoms, rather than by the body’s functional ability to regulate itself.

As a business administrator who has been studying chronobiology and sleep for 23 years, I realized that prevention requires a clear goal. We need to know when we are “successfully healthy.”

My Definition of Health

That is why I have developed a new, functional definition:

“Health is the maximum self-regulating capacity of an organism – without dependence on external, artificial interventions.”

Key points:

Health means effective self-regulation, not just a sense of well-being.
Medications or therapies are indicators of functional deficits, not of health.
Symptoms such as a fever or a cough can be a sign of healthy self-regulation—not necessarily an illness.

Thinking About Illness Differently

If illness is the result of our self-regulatory system being overwhelmed, our understanding changes dramatically:

“Illness is a condition in which self-regulation is blocked and external interventions become necessary.”

This leads to a tiered model of self-regulation that shows how well we are able to regulate ourselves:

This model shows that symptoms are not a disease in and of themselves. Only when external support becomes necessary do we speak of dysfunction.

The Four Pillars of Natural Health

For practical application, I have developed a four-pillar model:

Physiological Autonomy: Sleep, Digestion, Energy Levels, Natural Rhythms
Emotional Self-Regulation: Stress and Emotion Management Without Overwhelming Yourself
Rhythmic Coherence: Living in Harmony with Biological Rhythms
Adaptability / Resilience: Flexibility in responding to environmental stimuli; learning without becoming overwhelmed

Health is achieved when all four pillars are stable—without chronic dysregulation or dependence on external support.

HealthSpan vs. NoMedication HealthSpan

LifeSpan simply tells us how long we live. HealthSpan measures the number of years of “good health,” usually defined in terms of subjective well-being or medication-supported functionality.

This is where NoMedication HealthSpan comes in: It describes the period of a person’s life during which they live independently, without long-term medication.

Why this is important:

Starting at age 40, the likelihood of taking medication regularly increases.
Starting at age 60, 80–90% of people take at least one medication on a long-term basis.
The classic HealthSpan does not take this into account.

Longevity: This graph shows LifeSpan, HealthSpan, and NoMedication HealthSpan over the past few years. While the first two are increasing, NoMedication HealthSpan is decreasing.

NoMedication HealthSpan therefore provides a more realistic indicator of true, self-sustaining health —a foundation for prevention, lifestyle, and long-term resilience.

Systemic Reality vs. Ideal

The healthcare system is primarily focused on diagnosis and treatment:

Economic incentives promote treatment, not prevention.
Digitization is no substitute for self-regulation.
Political processes respond to lobbying pressure, not to functional truth.

In the short term, therefore, it is difficult to implement a new definition.

But change is possible

In the long term, I see opportunities for change:

Grassroots: People who practice self-reliant health create cultural pressure.
High-end target audiences: CEOs, athletes, and creative leaders make natural health something to aspire to.
Sustainability: Health as a form of biological sustainability is sparking new discussions.
AI and Tech Ethics: A focus on natural self-regulation could become part of the human-centered tech debate.

The effect is long-term: Cultural norms can shift the frame of reference—before the system itself reacts.

Conclusion

The classic WHO definition measures well-being, while the new definition measures functional self-regulation. The distinction between HealthSpan and NoMedication HealthSpan highlights how much of one’s lifetime is spent independently, resiliently, and without medication.

Prevention thus becomes measurable, health becomes manageable, and lifestyle can be strategically shaped. Symptoms are not automatically a sign of illness—they are often signals that the body is functioning properly.

For me, health today means the ability of the body and mind to regulate themselves—without relying on long-term external assistance—and thus to enable a genuine, sustainable quality of life.