WHAT THE DICTIONARY SAYS:
- State or character of being susceptible: susceptibility to disease.
- Capacity for receiving mental or moral impressions; tendency to be emotionally affected.
- Susceptibilities, capacities for emotion; feelings: His susceptibilities are easily wounded.
Susceptibility can be defined as the state of susceptible enough to acquire or achieve something.Susceptibility is the tendency of the body to receive impressions. The impressions can be of health, disease and cure. Susceptibility is not always associated with development of diseases. It is the inherent “sensitivity” with which patient is exposed to various forces, forces of disease and health. Susceptibility of an individual doesn’t only depend upon the physical constitution, but is an inherent mechanism which is altered by mental, emotional, psychological, biochemical and physical levels.
Susceptibility plays vital role in maintenance of various bodily functions, as well as alteration of stated to diseased. Following are some of the factors which are root to susceptibility of an individual:
- Physical constitution
- Diathesis
- Mental make up
- Biochemical reactions of body
- Emotional quotient
- Psychological outlook
For a very long time susceptibility was thought to be only an inner phenomenon, which predispose us to various diseases. It used to be considered as a separate entity which is responsible for evil phenomenon and morbid states. When Homeopathy came in existence and Hahnemann elaborated the infallible laws and basic philosophy of Homeopathy, it became clearer day by day that susceptibility is not a local melody or phenomenon. It is a complex array of vital force, mind and body.
If one is susceptible to a certain group of diseases or morbid states, he will develop such states and suffer. This power to “affect”, has many roots and many things add their importance while dealing with such states, for e.g. if an individual is susceptible to develop diabetes mellitus, he will develop it earlier if exposed to faulty life style such as diet and lack of exercise, overweight or obesity, more of stress, etc. All these factors contribute and aggravate the state susceptible or prone to diabetes mellitus.
We read susceptibility in context of disease, considering that a healthy individual is less or not susceptible to diseases under normal circumstances. When a fundamental cause, causation or maintaining factor comes into play, the susceptibility towards disease is increased.