The policies and processes that enable people to increase control over and improve their health. These address the needs of the population as a whole in the context of their daily lives, rather than focusing on people at risk for specific diseases, and are directed toward action on the determinants or causes of health. 

Health promotion is action-oriented and based on public policies, for instance provision of facilities such as bicycle pathways, recreational parks to encourage healthy behavior, and public meeting places to encourage social interaction; and deterring health-harming behavior by providing smoke-free zones. See Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion and health education