Health assessment data gathered from 15,500 participants can help reveal more about the social determi
nants behind obesity, diabetes, cardio-veascular disease and other health issues.
H
Building on waves 1 and 2 of themain Understanding Society survey, the first release of health assessment data is now available.
This data is what makes Understanding Society a ‘biosocial’ study – allowing researchers to combine demographic, social and behavioural data with biological and health assessment measures
The biological data was collected by registered nurses who assessed over 15,500 people and contains measures including:
  • grip strength
  • lung function
  • blood pressure
  • Anthropometrics (height, weight, body fat and waist circumference)
This new data enriches existing health-related components of Understanding Society such as the second wave of the survey which contains interviews with 54,600 adults and 5000 children (aged 10-15) in 30,500 thousand households across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The previous data includes questions about health-related behaviours such as:
  • exercise
  • nutrition
  • alcohol consumption
Researchers can now use both assessments and survey data to compare self-reported circumstances (from interviews with participants who were asked about their general health) with medically tested data collected by trained nurses. For example, the biological data, when compared with demographic and social data, could point to risk factors for certain long-term conditions amongst groups of participants with certain lifestyle behaviours or ethnic backgrounds.
Through analysis, this data will support the exploration of biological pathways and environmental influences on human behaviour. It can help society to learn more about the social determinants behind obesity, diabetes, cardio-vascular disease and other health issues.
Director of Understanding Society, Nick Buck said:
“This biomedical element of the study’s design complements the main part of the survey and opens up radical new research possibilities in the health and social sciences. Analysis of this data will help researchers understand the impact of poverty and disadvantage on health, and provide policy makers with clear evidence on the determinants of health outcomes.”
Data based on analysis of blood samples collected at the same time as the health assessments will be released over the next twelve months, including a further wave of health assessment data due in the autumn.
Access the Health assessment data documentation

Related information

We are pleased to announce a new ESRC Studentship for PhD study using the new Understanding Society health assessment data to analyse the impact of social disadvantage on health. Find out more