How to assess your health?

If someone asks us how tall we are, we can simply take a measuring tape and find out.

And.

If we want to know our weight, all we have to do is step on the scale.

But.

It might be harder to answer if we were asked how healthy we are.

To answer this question, we need to know what is happening in our bodies.

In this article, we will look at how we can assess our health and quality of life.

1 Lifestyle

As simple as the following questions may seem, your answers to these five questions will tell you a lot about your health. Ask yourself how many days in the last seven days have you:

1. Have you slept at least seven hours without a break?
2. Have you eaten at least five cups of fresh produce, of which at least three cups were non-starchy vegetables?
3. Have you drunk at least two litres of water?
4. Have you been physically active for at least 30 minutes?
5. Have you practised mindful relaxation, meditation or have expressed gratitude for at least five minutes?

If your answer to any of these questions is less than four days – you now know which areas of your lifestyle you could make an extra effort 😊.

Why is it important to regularly assess your health and quality of life?

Self-assessment is a key element in maintaining personal health. It contributes to our awareness of our habits, behaviour and emotional state, thus making us more attentive to how these factors affect our health and well-being.

Regular assessment of health and quality of life can help:

• Identify and prevent potential health problems early, before they start affecting our health and quality of life.
• Regular self-assessment helps us to monitor our progress over time, i.e. to understand whether we are doing everything right or if we need to change something (whether it is treating chronic health conditions, changing dietary habits, etc.).
• Knowing our condition allows us to set achievable goals for fitness, mental health, lifestyle or dietary change.
• Knowing our health status allows us to make more informed choices about diet, exercise, stress management, etc.

In other words, by regularly assessing our health and well-being, we become more proactive and can tackle the challenges they pose.

Components of health and quality of life

Before turning to assessment methods, it is important to understand the components of health and quality of life.

These two areas can be broadly divided into:

• Physical health refers to the state of our bodies, including fitness, nutrition, sleep and the presence or absence of disease.
• Mental and emotional health, which includes psychological well-being, stress management, mental stability and cognitive functioning.
• Social well-being, including the quality of our relationships, sense of belonging and social support.
• Environmental factors, cover our living conditions, financial stability, access to healthcare, clean air, etc.

And now, let’s look at how we can measure each one of these factors.

2 Physical health

One kilometre run or VO2max

This simple exercise proves to be an excellent tool for predicting overall mortality risk.

Maximal exercise capacity (expressed as METs in most studies) is a better predictor of mortality risk than general fitness – even if a person has health problems such as a body mass index above 30, diabetes, high blood pressure or high cholesterol.

1 MET is defined as resting metabolic rate, or the amount of oxygen consumed at rest while sitting quietly in a chair (approximately 3.5 ml of oxygen per 1 kg body weight per minute, which for a 70 kg person = 1.2 kcal per minute). As the level of exercise increases, so does the calorie/oxygen consumption. Those able to increase it to 5.5±2.4 METs in 8-12 minutes have about twice the risk of death as those able to reach 7.0±2.6 METs in 8-12 minutes.

If you find MET or VO2max hard to measure – check if you can run 3.5 kilometres in less than 18 minutes.

Heart rate recovery

Another health indicator related to your heart is how quickly your heart rate returns to normal after exercise. Your heart rate recovery indicates how fit you are.

It is also linked to the risk of cardiovascular disease, including atrial fibrillation, and overall mortality.

And.

With regular cardiovascular exercise (walking, jogging, dancing) – You can get better relatively quickly (within a few months).

How can you measure it?

1. First, speed up your heart rate with vigorous exercise.
2. While breathing hard – measure your heart rate (pulse).
3. 3 Rest for two minutes and then measure your pulse again.
4. Subtract the second number from the first and – the difference is the speed at which your heart rate recovers.

Preferably it should be between 22 and 52 beats per minute. If your heart rate recovery is below 12 beats per minute, you may have a heart problem and/or a high risk of type 2 diabetes.

Resting heart rate and heart rate variability

Assume you have successfully completed the lifestyle questionnaire and are in good physical shape by peak physical performance standards.

However.

Even if you exercise hard, your fat mass does not decrease and your strength does not increase according to your expectations.

In some cases, this could be due to overtraining – the cumulative stress accumulating in your body and mind can hinder progress.

In other words, our body composition improves and strength increases when we are stress-free. Stress can come in many forms – fasting, overtraining, etc. also cause stress to our bodies.

Resting heart rate (RHR) and heart rate variability (HRV) are probably the best ways to assess the body’s daily readiness for more stress. Lower RHR and higher HRV (indicating better recovery or fitness) are both significantly associated with longevity.

Of course, you can choose exercises based purely on how you feel.

However.

Your nervous system, which controls RHR and HRV, plays a key role in how your body will respond to the workout.

Body composition

Annual health checks and standard blood tests often fail to detect major health problems. During your visit to the doctor, your height and weight may also be measured, and your body mass index (BMI) determined.

Unfortunately, BMI is not sensitive enough to reflect changes in the ratio of lean-to-fat body mass over a long time.

Therefore.

To determine your overall health, it is better to evaluate body composition (the ratio of fat to lean body mass).

Nutrient intake

If our body is lacking something – we feel it, for example:

• Nothing makes our mood and immune system worse than low vitamin D levels;
• Anyone complaining of low energy, difficulty losing weight or poor exercise tolerance should have their iron levels assessed;
• Those with deteriorating mental capacity or problems with prolonged/persistent pain should consider supplementing with essential fatty acids, especially omega-3.

Fasting insulin levels

Insulin is a hormone secreted by the pancreas and is crucial for regulating blood glucose levels. Insulin acts like a key that unlocks cells, allowing glucose from the bloodstream to enter the cells and give them energy. Maintaining normal blood glucose levels is essential for metabolism and overall health.

Current research and clinical practice do not (yet) agree on the optimal insulin level.

However.

Fasting insulin tests are a valuable tool to detect early insulin resistance and monitor insulin regulation in the body. Especially for people who are at risk for insulin resistance but are not prediabetic or diabetic.

Cholesterol

Cholesterol tests measure the amount of cholesterol and triglycerides in your blood. This can provide useful information on health and longevity, as elevated levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL), total cholesterol and triglycerides are associated with a higher risk of heart disease and mortality.

But.

Just as food quality is more important than food intake, the ratio of HDL to LDL cholesterol is more important than total cholesterol.

In other words, it is the ratio of HDL to LDL cholesterol that matters, not high total cholesterol.

To assume that cholesterol automatically causes heart disease is like blaming firemen for starting fires. Where there is a fire, there will always be firemen, but where there are firemen, there is not always a fire.

Read more about cholesterol HERE.

Thyroid hormone levels

Interestingly, high cholesterol levels were previously used as a diagnostic indicator of an underactive thyroid gland.

When people (unfortunately mainly women) report depression-like symptoms, cold hands and feet, hair loss, brittle nails, weight gain or unexplained weight loss, they are often screened for thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH). However, this does not provide comprehensive information on the metabolic function associated with all thyroid hormones.

To avoid a prolonged period of unpleasant symptoms and the need for medication in the future, it is usually better to request that free T4 and free T3 levels be checked immediately along with TSH so that the doctor can make more specific recommendations for dietary and lifestyle changes.

Free and total testosterone

Although an underactive thyroid gland may be rare in men, men are also prone to unhealthy hormonal changes.

If you notice fat starting to accumulate in the abdomen and chest area, it may be time to check your testosterone levels.

Men who want to maintain vitality and muscle mass would be well advised to track changes in total and free (active) testosterone levels over time.

Testosterone does not only determine muscle development, it also has a significant impact on mood and general metabolism, mainly insulin sensitivity.

Low testosterone levels may also indicate early insulin resistance, especially if the trend occurs from 20-25 years of age.

3 Mental and emotional health

Mental health assessment is used to check whether a person is psychologically and socially healthy and to identify mental health disorders such as depression or neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease.

This assessment is usually carried out by a specialist – a General Practitioner, Psychologist or Psychiatrist.

Here are the key components of a mental and emotional health assessment:

1. General appearance and behaviour.

Appearance gives clues about a person’s mental state – whether they look their age, what their style of clothing suggests, whether they are well groomed, whether they are able to maintain eye contact, etc.

2. Mood and affectability.

Both mood and affectability are linked to emotions. The subjective and objective aspects of mood should be assessed – expressed in movements or changes in voice timbre, posture or pose, etc.

3. Train of thought

To identify and assess the person’s train of thought, the assessor should ask direct questions. Are his/her thoughts logical and/or coherent? Are they blocking any thoughts? Assessing the content of thoughts may reveal negative feelings, such as hopelessness.

4. Cognitive functioning.

Cognitive function is related to intellectual ability. It tests the ability to read, write and recall important events in the recent past, how quickly a person can recognise familiar people and places, whether a person can concentrate and perform simple calculations quickly, etc.

5. Judgement and understanding.

Judgement is measured by how well a person makes informed choices and solves problems, while understanding is assessed by gathering as much information as possible from the person’s point of view. Topics may cover reasons why the person visited the psychologist and their understanding of the problems that led to the visit.

4 Social welfare

Social well-being can be defined as building and maintaining positive interactions with other people. It is measured mainly through subjective and individual measures, where people rate the quality of these interactions according to their perceptions.

To assess your social well-being, I propose the following test.

Read the following 10 statements carefully and answer honestly, using the following scoring: Almost always = 2 points / Sometimes/usually = 1 point / Very rarely/never = 0 points.

1. I have a stable network of close friends and/or family.
2. I try to maintain positive relationships with people.
3. I communicate well with others and consider myself a good listener.
4. I consider other people’s feelings.
5. I can take responsibility and apologise if I have offended someone.
6. I can balance my needs with the needs of others.
7. I get involved in my community by taking part in activities or volunteering.
8. I have people in my life whom I trust.
9. I am interested in others, including people from different backgrounds than myself.
10. I am compassionate and try to help others where I can.

Add together the points you scored for the ten questions:

• Score: 15-20 points – You have excellent social skills. Keep doing it!
• 9-14 points – There is room for improvement. Look again at the statements for which you scored 1 or 0. What changes can you make to improve your score?
• 0-8 points – You could work a little on your social well-being. Look at the assessment again and try to improve your results.

Key takeaways

Health and quality of life are two interrelated concepts that determine how our bodies function, how we feel and how we interact with others.

As you can see, our health is incredibly complex! And given this, the number on the scales has very little meaning in the context of our overall health.

I urge you to start focusing on what really matters – on how you feel, on healthy lifestyle and dietary habits – on what will really help you be healthier and more energetic.

To stay healthy, it’s not enough to have annual check-ups – you need to regularly monitor your well-being and key health indicators.

If you do this, you may be able to achieve complete physical, mental and social well-being (rather than just avoiding illness).

Live well, eat a delicious and balanced, exercise and – be healthy!