Age 46-48 Survey

The Age 46-48 Survey took place between July 2016 and July 2018 and had a particular focus on health. Just over 8,500 of you took part.

What we asked

The Age 46-48 Survey involved a 50 minute interview and a paper questionnaire which asked you about, among other things,  your relationships, your children, your parents, where you lived, your jobs and other things you had been doing since you were last interviewed, your income, qualifications and training, your health, smoking, drinking, exercise and leisure activities.  As part of the interview you also completed a series of assessments which measured memory, concentration and other aspects of cognitive ability.

Nurses measured your height, weight, waist circumference, hip circumference, blood pressure, balance and grip strength. You were also asked to provide a blood sample so we could measure, among other things, levels of cholesterol and glycated haemoglobin which is associated with the risk of developing diabetes. If you agreed, we will also extract DNA from your blood which will allow us to examine the role of genetics in common medical conditions such as diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis and coronary heart disease.

We asked you to wear a monitor for seven days which recorded your physical activity. The data collected from this will mean researchers can examine in detail the impact of different types of activity (and also inactivity) on health.

You also completed an online questionnaire about your diet.