NHS Health Checks

Book your appointment here if:

• You’re aged 40 to 74

• Do not have a pre-existing health condition

• Received an invitation or haven’t had an NHS Health Check in the last 5 years

The NHS Health Check is a health screening for adults in England between the ages of 40 and 74. It is designed to detect early signs of stroke, kidney disease, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, or dementia. As we age, our risk of developing these conditions increases. The NHS Health Check aims to identify ways to reduce this risk.

The NHS Health Check aims to lower your risk of getting conditions that affect the heart and blood vessels, such as heart disease, stroke and kidney disease.

Many of the warning signs for these conditions, such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol, do not have symptoms.

The NHS Health Check helps you find out if you are at risk of getting these conditions so you can take action to improve your health. This could include making lifestyle changes or taking medicines.

The risk factors assessed during the health check are often shared by other conditions, including type 2 diabetes, preventable cancers and respiratory illness. An NHS Health Check could help you to reduce your chance of getting these conditions too.

Dementia and heart disease also share common risk factors.

Your NHS Health Check will be done by one of our trained healthcare assistants.

The check takes about 20 to 30 minutes and usually includes:

• measuring your height and weight
• a blood pressure test
• a cholesterol and blood sugar (diabetes) blood test

You’ll also be asked some questions about your health including:

• whether any of your close relatives have had any medical conditions
• if you smoke, and how much
• if you drink alcohol, and how much
• how much physical activity you do

Your age, gender and ethnicity will also be recorded

You’ll be given your cardiovascular risk score of developing a heart or circulation problem, such as heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes or kidney disease, over the next 10 years.

The healthcare professional may describe this risk score as low, moderate or high.

Everybody’s cardiovascular risk rises with age, so the next time you have an NHS Health Check your risk score may be higher, even if your test results are the same.

There are some things about your risk which you cannot change, such as your age, ethnicity and family history. But the most important factors in your risk score (such as smoking, your cholesterol level and blood pressure) can be changed.

Your NHS Health Check results should also be broken down into:

• your diabetes risk assessment
• your body mass index (BMI) score
• your blood pressure
• your cholesterol levels
• your alcohol use score
• your physical activity assessment result
• your diabetes risk assessment