Get a calculation of your heart's age

There’s an article about this test, and heart disease risk, in today’s Guardian. Apparently the 80% of people who don’t know their cholesterol levels are assigned the average in the test, which is outside safe levels. Then they wonder why 80% of people taking the test have a heart age higher than their actual age!

I can’t find anything in the Grauniad maggie but here’s a link to something in the I
www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.independent.co.uk/news/health/nhs-heart-age-test-evidence-ben-goldacre-waiting-times-gp-cholesterol-blood-pressure-public-health-a8527631.html%3famp

Here’s the Guardian link, jane. We’re old school (or at least DH is), so I just noticed it this morning in the paper paper.
www.theguardian.com/society/2018/sep/08/heart-health-the-science-behind-keeping-heart-disease-at-bay

janeainsworth,my GP is in dispute with the cardiology team. She says they're "only focussing on the heart" not the kidneys or the RA.
The cardiologist said clearly there is no evidence to suggest statins for a woman in my age group, with cholesterol of 5.6 and AF and RA will gain any protection from heart attack or stroke. A friend who is a researcher says the same. She adds that the potential side effects of statins are currently being under estimated.
The nonsense on line test takes no account of whether the RA is well controlled (my inflammation rates are normal now) , what stage of kidney disease the patient has and whether the patient takes medication for kidney or AF. I don't. It's a bit of a minefield and I expect this silly test will raise anxiety in many people who have nothing to worry about. Someone suggested not putting in a postcode from a deprived area, put in a village in the south east and your risk will drop. Daft or wot!

Someone suggested not putting in a postcode from a deprived area, put in a village in the south east and your risk will drop. Daft or wot! ??

So basically they are assuming that people in deprived areas will have a higher risk, and factoring that in, and then using the results to show that people in deprived areas have a higher risk!!

I think there’s a name for that sort of argument!

Meant to say thanks maggie

I am 72 (soon) and I have a heart age of 76. I answered no to all the questions other than my weight and height. My blood pressure is within limits and I know that I am overweight, but if I lose weight (Doesn’t say how much) it will only knock a year off my heart age. I am expected to live until I am 86 with a 13% risk of having a heart attack or stroke. Whoever formulated this survey I hope they didn’t pay them a lot!

To lighten the mood for Archers followers, here is the Ambridge Observer version of the test.

Sorry to be dim but what are AF and RA?

My heart age is one year lower than my actual age apparently and I can expect to live till 85 which is quite encouraging. I have raised cholesterol but didnt fill it in as I couldn't remember the reading but I refused statins. I do take BP pills.

shysal