Q.When an apparently healthy person is diagnosed as unhealthy by a psychiatrist, the reason could be that:

The question tests the distinction between physical health and mental health. An apparently healthy person — someone with no visible physical illness — can still be unhealthy if their mental or emotional state is disturbed. A psychiatrist diagnoses based on psychological and behavioural criteria, not on physical symptoms or social markers like wealth or efficiency.

The NCERT Class 12 Biology textbook (chapter on Human Health and Disease) clearly states that mental health involves the ability to adjust to social situations, manage emotions, and behave appropriately. When a person shows behavioural and social maladjustment — such as difficulty forming relationships, coping with stress, or functioning in daily life — a psychiatrist would consider them unhealthy, even if they look physically fit. …

The question touches on a fundamental distinction in health — the difference between being physically healthy and being mentally or socially healthy. In everyday life, we often assume that a person who looks fit, eats well, and has no obvious disease is completely healthy. But health, as the NCERT textbook explains, is not merely the absence of disease. It is a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being.

A psychiatrist is a medical professional trained to diagnose and treat mental disorders. Their focus is not on whether a person can run a race or lift a heavy weight, but on how the person thinks, feels, behaves, and interacts with others. So when a psychiatrist declares an apparently healthy person as unhealthy, the reason must lie in the domain of mental or social health — not in physical appearance or economic status.

Let us examine each option carefully.

Option (A) — "the patient was not efficient at his work" — is not a valid psychiatric criterion. Work efficiency can drop for many reasons: lack of sleep, poor motivation, or even a temporary personal problem. It does not, by itself, indicate a mental disorder. The NCERT textbook does not list work inefficiency as a sign of mental illness.

Option (B) — "the patient was not economically prosperous" — is equally irrelevant. Poverty or lack of wealth is a socio-economic condition, not a psychiatric diagnosis. Many economically prosperous people suffer from mental disorders, and many people with modest means are perfectly mentally healthy. The textbook clearly separates social well-being from economic status.

Option (D) — "he does not take interest in sports" — is too narrow and trivial. Lack of interest in sports could be a personal preference, a cultural habit, or a temporary phase. It is not a diagnostic sign of any mental disorder. The NCERT textbook does not mention sports interest as a criterion for mental health.

This leaves option (C) — "the patient shows behavioural and social maladjustment." This is the correct answer. Behavioural maladjustment means the person's actions are inappropriate, disruptive, or harmful to themselves or others. Social maladjustment means the person struggles to form or maintain relationships, to follow social norms, or to function in group settings. These are exactly the kinds of signs a psychiatrist looks for when diagnosing mental disorders. …

Method: Tag Each Option by Health DOMAIN, Then Match to a Psychiatrist's Focus

Instead of arguing through each option in prose, tag which domain of health it belongs to,

then ask which domain a psychiatrist specifically evaluates.

Match: a psychiatrist's specialty is mental health — assessing behaviour, emotional

state, and how a person functions socially — NOT physical fitness, income, or hobbies. Only

option (c) sits in the domain a psychiatrist actually diagnoses; the other three describe …