The Porous Body: a new concept for an integral perspective in Medicine, Bioethics, and Public Health
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.56116/cms.v65.n1.2025.2208Keywords:
porous body, relational bioethics, public health, integrative medicine, Deleuze, Spinoza, epigenetics, neouroscience, social determinants, health justiceAbstract
This article presents the original concept of the "porous body" as an integral and relational perspective in contrast to the traditional biomedical model in medicine, bioethics, and public health. Drawing on Spinoza's monism and the assemblages of Deleuze and Guattari, this notion characterizes the body as permeable, dynamic, and interdependent with its biological, social, and cultural environment. Historically, from magical-religious models to molecular biomedicine, it highlights how views of the body have evolved from the supernatural to more mechanistic and reductionist approaches. The porous body challenges this fragmentation, highlighting the influence of epigenetic and neuroscientific factors that demonstrate how environmental and social conditions affect human health. In bioethics, it promotes a relational ethic that values community interdependence over isolated individual autonomy. In public health, it emphasizes the importance of addressing social and environmental determinants through inclusive and equitable policies. Finally, it questions neoliberal logic in medicine, emphasizing health as a collective right, and proposes practical strategies to ensure more just and sustainable healthcare.
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