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Are You As Healthy As You Think?
Take this exclusive SELF quiz, then learn how you can stack the deck in your favor.
Even if you feel pretty good—and we hope you do—there are always ways you could be even healthier. Your answers to the 15 questions below will help you get an objective view on your health and pinpoint a handful of little changes you can make today that will snowball into big lifelong health benefits.
YOUR EXPERT ADVISORS. Top-notch docs Lynne Shuster, M.D., director of the Women's Health Clinic at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and Melissa McNeil, M.D., professor of gynecology, obstetrics and reproductive sciences at the University of Pittsburgh, developed this quiz for SELF readers.
THE BIG BONUS. If you take this quiz online at Self.com/go/health, you'll receive personalized, in-depth advice based on your specific health issues. Log on to enter your responses and see how you compare with other readers. Then, if you're inspired to make some lifestyle tweaks, you can take the quiz again to see what a big difference they can make in your score and in your life. Feeling good has never been so easy.
| 1. How familiar are you with the medical history of your relatives? | |||
| I know the medical histories of my parents and grandparents | +2 | ||
| I know the medical histories of my parents | +1 | ||
| I don't have a clue | 0 | ||
| Your score __ | |||
| 2. When was your most recent Pap smear? | |||
| Within the past two years | +2 | ||
| Three or four years ago | +1 | ||
| Five or more years ago | -1 | ||
| Your score __ | |||
| 3. How regular are your periods (when you're not on hormonal contraception)? | |||
| I have between 9 and 12 periods per year | +1 | ||
| I have about six per year | 0 | ||
| I have five or fewer per year | -1 | ||
| Your score __ | |||
| 4. How often do you go to the dentist? | |||
| Every six months for cleanings, or as often as my dentist recommends | +2 | ||
| Whenever I have a problem | +1 | ||
| Almost never | -1 | ||
| Your score __ | |||
| 5. When was the last time you had your blood pressure and cholesterol checked? | |||
| Within the past two years | +2 | ||
| Several years ago | +1 | ||
| I can't remember | -1 | ||
| Your score __ | |||
| 6. What's your body-mass index? (Calculate yours at Self.com/fitness/calculators.) | |||
| Between 18.5 and 24.9 (normal) | +2 | ||
| Between 25 and 29.9 (overweight) | -1 | ||
| Below 18.5 (underweight) | -2 | ||
| Thirty or higher (obese) | -3 | ||
| Your score __ | |||
| 7. When was the last time you had a tetanus shot? | |||
| Within the past 10 years | +2 | ||
| Not since I was a child | +1 | ||
| I've never had one, or I don't remember | 0 | ||
| Your score __ | |||
| 8. How much sweat-inducing physical activity do you do each week? | |||
| Thirty to 60 minutes most days | +2 | ||
| Thirty minutes a few times per week | +1 | ||
| Very little, if any | -1 | ||
| Your score __ | |||
| 9. Which best describes your sexual practices? | |||
| I'm in a long-term, mutually monogamous relationship | +2 | ||
| I'm not committed to one person, but I always use condoms when I have intercourse | +1 | ||
| I'm not committed to one person, and I do not use condoms consistently | -5 | ||
| Your score __ | |||
| 10. How do you typically cope with stress? | |||
| I regularly carve out time to recharge | +2 | ||
| I vent about my crises to a friend or a family member | +1 | ||
| I don't know what to do. Mainly I feel overwhelmed | -1 | ||
| I rely on alcohol, food or another unhealthy habit to help me relax | -2 | ||
| Your score __ | |||
| 11. How do you protect yourself from the sun? | |||
| I slather on a moisturizer with SPF 15 every day and wear sunscreen on exposed areas when I'm outside | +2 | ||
| I don't wear block regularly but never try to tan either | 0 | ||
| I allow myself to tan once or twice a year when I'm on vacation | 1 | ||
| I don't protect myself. I like to tan | -2 | ||
| Your score __ | |||
| 12. Which of the following best describes your intake of calcium-rich foods such as lowfat dairy products or calcium-fortified OJ? | |||
| I have three or more servings daily, or I take a daily calcium supplement (taking a multivitamin doesn't count) | +2 | ||
| I have one or two servings per day | +1 | ||
| I have a few servings per week | -1 | ||
| I don't consume these foods on a regular basis | -1 | ||
| Your score __ | |||
| 13. Do you smoke? | |||
| No, and I never have | +2 | ||
| I used to smoke, but I quit | +1 | ||
| I don't smoke, but I live with or work around smokers who puff near me | -3 | ||
| Yes, I light up regularly | -4 | ||
| Your score __ | |||
| 14. How much alcohol do you drink? | |||
| I average one drink or fewer per day | +1 | ||
| I drink once in a while, but then I'll often have four or more | -1 | ||
| I have about two drinks daily | -1 | ||
| I average more than two drinks a day; at times I can't remember how much I drank or what I did afterward | -3 | ||
| Your score __ | |||
| 15. How often do you treat aches with an over-the-counter pain reliever? | |||
| I take one once or twice a year | 0 | ||
| I use one occasionally | 0 | ||
| I pop a pain reliever most days | -1 | ||
| Your score __ | |||
YOUR TOTAL SCORE
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Author Info: Stacey Colino
Published: FEBRUARY 2007, SELF Magazine, The Condé Nast Publications |
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