Are broken bones, loneliness and poor sleep really hidden killers?

Conclusion As the researchers say, the WHO definition of health encompasses physical, mental and social wellbeing – not just the presence or absence of disease. But how often are these extra dimensions taken into account when assessing a person's health status? In this sample of older adults, just looking at their disease status puts the majority of them into an apparently "robust" health group. Yet when you consider the additional dimensions of psychological health and wellbeing, you seem to get a much better indication of those who were at higher or lower risk of dying or being incapacitated in the coming five years. The "hidden killers" the media refer to are factors such as frailty and fractures, and depression and loneliness, which would be overlooked if you looked at disease diagnoses alone.   This suggests that a comprehensive view of a person's health and wellbeing is needed if you are looking at their risk status, and trying to target appropriate medical care and support. But you can't say from the results of a study like this that these factors are being overlooked within healthcare. For example, just because a medical risk model looking at physical diseases alone hasn't looked at these factors as a risk indicator doesn't necessarily mean that the people with these conditions have not been diagnosed in medical practice and are not receiving appropriate care and treatment. The media term "hidden" in this context is therefore...
Source: NHS News Feed - Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Lifestyle/exercise Medical practice Source Type: news