Death Risk Quiz - Macabre But Informative
Item lifted from WebMD website: “Researchers have created a new quiz to gauge the chance that people aged 50 and older will die within four years' time.
The 12-question quiz appears in The Journal of the American Medical Association. It covers topics including age, BMI (body mass index), smoking, diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and trouble with daily activities due to poor health or memory problems.
The quiz is designed for older adults who aren't living in nursing homes or other institutions, write Sei Lee, MD, and colleagues, who invented the quiz.”
Here we go with the “older adults” appellation again. Now it is directed at people over 50. (Have you noticed how the age keeps going downward?) Anyway…if you take the quiz, you can see the major indicators that predict health risks.
My score was 3, two points of which were my age and one was for being underweight. My body mass index (BMI) is 18.2. That puts my risk of death within the next four years at less than 4%. If you are over 50 years of age, you might want to calculate your own score. [Younger readers stop at this point.]
Here is the quiz, as it appears in the Journal of the American Medical Association:
Age. Use this point guide:
Age 60-64: 1 point
Age 65-69: 2 points
Age 70-74: 3 points
Age 75-79: 4 points
Age 80-84: 5 points
Age 85 or older: 7 points
Sex. Give yourself two points if you're a man; no points if you're a woman.
Weight, height, and BMI (body mass index). Give yourself one point if your BMI is below normal (less than 25).
Has a doctor told you that you have diabetes or high blood sugar? If so, give yourself two points.
Has a doctor ever told you that you have cancer or a malignant tumor, excluding minor skin cancers? If so, give yourself two points.
Do you have a chronic lung disease that limits your usual activities or makes you need oxygen at home? If so, give yourself two points.
Has a doctor ever told you that you have congestive heart failure? If so, give yourself two points.
Have you smoked cigarettes in the past week? If so, give yourself two points.
Because of a health or memory problem, do you have any difficulty with bathing or showering? If so, give yourself two points.
Because of a health or memory problem, do you have any difficulty with managing your money -- such as paying your bills and keeping track of expenses? If so, give yourself two points.
Because of a health problem do you have any difficulty with walking several blocks? If so, give yourself two points.
Because of a health problem do you have any difficulty with pulling or pushing large objects like a living room chair? If so, give yourself one point.
Add up the points.
Interpreting Scores
Here are the quiz scores and four-year death risks for the people Lee's team studied to create the quiz:
0-5 points: less than 4%
6-9 points: 15%
10-13 points: 42%
14 or more points: 64%
The 12-question quiz appears in The Journal of the American Medical Association. It covers topics including age, BMI (body mass index), smoking, diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and trouble with daily activities due to poor health or memory problems.
The quiz is designed for older adults who aren't living in nursing homes or other institutions, write Sei Lee, MD, and colleagues, who invented the quiz.”
Here we go with the “older adults” appellation again. Now it is directed at people over 50. (Have you noticed how the age keeps going downward?) Anyway…if you take the quiz, you can see the major indicators that predict health risks.
My score was 3, two points of which were my age and one was for being underweight. My body mass index (BMI) is 18.2. That puts my risk of death within the next four years at less than 4%. If you are over 50 years of age, you might want to calculate your own score. [Younger readers stop at this point.]
Here is the quiz, as it appears in the Journal of the American Medical Association:
Age. Use this point guide:
Age 60-64: 1 point
Age 65-69: 2 points
Age 70-74: 3 points
Age 75-79: 4 points
Age 80-84: 5 points
Age 85 or older: 7 points
Sex. Give yourself two points if you're a man; no points if you're a woman.
Weight, height, and BMI (body mass index). Give yourself one point if your BMI is below normal (less than 25).
Has a doctor told you that you have diabetes or high blood sugar? If so, give yourself two points.
Has a doctor ever told you that you have cancer or a malignant tumor, excluding minor skin cancers? If so, give yourself two points.
Do you have a chronic lung disease that limits your usual activities or makes you need oxygen at home? If so, give yourself two points.
Has a doctor ever told you that you have congestive heart failure? If so, give yourself two points.
Have you smoked cigarettes in the past week? If so, give yourself two points.
Because of a health or memory problem, do you have any difficulty with bathing or showering? If so, give yourself two points.
Because of a health or memory problem, do you have any difficulty with managing your money -- such as paying your bills and keeping track of expenses? If so, give yourself two points.
Because of a health problem do you have any difficulty with walking several blocks? If so, give yourself two points.
Because of a health problem do you have any difficulty with pulling or pushing large objects like a living room chair? If so, give yourself one point.
Add up the points.
Interpreting Scores
Here are the quiz scores and four-year death risks for the people Lee's team studied to create the quiz:
0-5 points: less than 4%
6-9 points: 15%
10-13 points: 42%
14 or more points: 64%
posted by Free Spirit at 9:24 AM
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