By Sara Mizushima
Our lives are filled with expectations and goals. Therefore, it’s essential to know your health risks regardless of your age. Whether you are falling in love, striving for that dream job, or planning for retirement, being healthy will help you see it all happen.
HMSA members, age 18 and older, can now visit hmsa.com and take HealthPass' free online health risk assessment questionnaire. This tool evaluates your health and lifestyle and identifies your health risks.
Twenty-four percent of Americans, age 18 and older, are not physically active. Add an unhealthy diet filled with foods that are high in fat and calories, sugary snacks, fast food, and alcohol. A sedentary lifestyle, unhealthy diet, and being overweight can increase the health risks for coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and other medical conditions.
Other serious health risks include smoking and sun production.
- According to a study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, men who smoked shortened their lives by 13.2 years. Smoking shortened female smokers’ lives by 14.5 years.
- In Hawai‘i, we get high levels of exposure to ultraviolet radiation. Depending on your skin type and family history, you could be at risk for skin cancer.
In addition to evaluating these health habits, the health risk assessment also looks at weight management, stress management, alcohol use and injury prevention.
By completing our online health risk questionnaire, HMSA members will be taking the first step in doing something for themselves and their future. And our support won’t end there.
After completing the questionnaire, a wellness action plan that is specific to your needs and goals will be created. This will eliminate any guess work by showing you what you can do to better your health.
On top of that, HealthPass, in partnership with HealthMedia®, Inc., offers valuable tools and resources to help you stay on track and meet your goals. In addition to the health risk assessment questionnaire, called HealthMedia’s® Succeed™, there are interactive lifestyle programs on weight management, nutrition, smoking cessation and stress management that can be used for your convenience in the privacy of your home.
You may also be eligible for additional HealthPass services at no cost. To further supplement your health risk assessment, a HealthPass biometric screening and consultation can be scheduled. We will measure your blood pressure, height, weight, body mass index, blood cholesterol, and blood sugar. We will also do a body fat analysis. Then, a health professional will discuss your results, help map your goals, and answer any of your questions.
Other HealthPass benefits for eligible HMSA members are telephone consultations and health coaching, preventive exams, physical fitness assessments, and access to go Get on Track, an online physical activity tracking program.
We want you to succeed in whatever you take on in life. That means supporting and helping you to be as healthy as you should be.
Go online now and visit hmsa.com. From the home page, search for health risk assessment. Take the health risk assessment questionnaire and open the doors to a wealth of support, where you’ll be guided toward a healthier future.
It’s your choice. Take the first step and succeed.
