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How the Shift Health MOT works.
The Health MOT is designed to organise information and priorities, not manufacture a clinical diagnosis from a questionnaire.
Why there is no overall health score
A single 0–100 score would imply a level of validated clinical precision this tool does not have. Instead, the MOT separates different domains and labels them Good foundation, Worth reviewing, or Higher priority.
BMI and waist
Adult BMI uses weight kg ÷ height metres². NICE classifies standard adult overweight at BMI 25–29.9 and obesity from 30, with lower BMI thresholds used for several ethnic groups because cardiometabolic risk occurs at lower BMI. Waist-to-height ratio is used as additional central-adiposity context, particularly when BMI is below 35.
Blood pressure
NHS guidance usually considers blood pressure high at 140/90 mmHg or above in a healthcare setting, or 135/85 or above for home readings. A single reading does not diagnose hypertension. Very high readings require proper clinical interpretation, especially if symptoms are present.
Sleep apnoea signal
The MOT flags reported breathing pauses, gasping/choking, loud snoring and significant daytime sleepiness because these are NHS-listed symptoms of sleep apnoea. It does not calculate an apnoea score or diagnose the condition.
Physical activity
Current UK guidance recommends adults work toward at least 150 minutes of moderate activity a week (or equivalent vigorous activity) plus strengthening activity on at least 2 days. The MOT treats lower activity as an opportunity to build capacity, not as a failure.
Alcohol
The UK low-risk drinking guideline is no more than 14 units per week on a regular basis, spread across 3 or more days if drinking that amount.
Nutrition, stress and emotional eating
These sections use behavioural prompts rather than validated diagnostic scales. Regular loss-of-control eating is escalated because binge-eating disorder is a recognised condition that deserves appropriate assessment rather than stricter dieting.
Weight-loss scenarios
The 5%, 10%, 15%, 20% and 25% table performs simple arithmetic on current weight and BMI. It deliberately does not predict a precise blood-pressure reduction, diabetes remission probability or other individual medical outcome.
Local storage and privacy
The static MOT stores a structured profile in the browser using localStorage so later Progress Centre releases can reuse it on the same device. It does not itself send those answers to Shift Some Timber or a server.
Sources
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