Description:
This indicator measures the proportion of adults (aged 16+) with 2 or more health risk behaviours (current smoker, harmful or hazardous drinker, low physical activity and obesity).
Source of Data:
The data for this indicator comes from the Scottish Health Survey (SHeS).
SHeS provides a detailed picture of the health of the Scottish population in private households and SHeS data is published on the Scottish Government website, here Scottish Health Survey - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)
Definitions:
Current cigarette smoker
Harmful/hazardous drinker: - Drinking above the recommended weekly limit of 14 units of alcohol per week
Low physical activity: - Failing to meet the physical activity recommendations of at least 150 minutes of moderately intensive physical activity or 75 minutes vigorous activity per week or an equivalent combination of both.
Obesity: Having a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 or over.
Body Mass Index (BMI) is a widely accepted measure that allows for differences in weight due to height. It is defined as weight (kg)/square of height (m2).
Height and weight measurements have been collected during the survey interview every year since its inception in 1995. SHeS is one of a small number of surveys that collects height, weight and waist measures rather than using self-reported measures, which are known to be less accurate. Height and weight are used to calculate Body Mass Index (BMI).
In 2021, due to the impact of the pandemic, it was not possible to interview SHeS participants in their homes and interviews were conducted via telephone instead. It was therefore not possible to obtain the standardised height and weight measurements. Where they were happy to do so, participants were asked to estimate their height and weight, with these self-reported measures used to calculate estimated BMI.
Work undertaken to analyse data from the Health Survey for England (HSE) and Active Lives Surveys found that, on average, participants overestimated their height and underestimated their weight. Adjustments for adults have been made to account for this and while these corrections appear to remove some bias from the estimates, caution is advised in interpreting this data.
Based on their BMI adult participants were classified into the following groups based on the World Health Organisation (WHO) classification:
BMI (kg/m2)
- Less than 18.5 Underweight
- 18.5 to less than 25 Normal
- 25 to less than 30 Overweight, excluding obesity
- 30 to less than 40 Obesity, excluding morbid obesity
- 40+ Morbid obesity
The BMI data included in this indicator in 2021 is based on data that has been adjusted according to the formula from this HSE and Active Lives work referenced previously.
Criteria for Change:
This evaluation is based on: An annual change in the percentage of adults with 2+ risk behaviours which is significant at the 95% confidence limit.