Community-supported wellness led by, and for, older adults
Community-member planning team:
Walter Griffin, Debra Jones, Cheryl Johnson, Richard Long, Donna Nordin, Mary St. Martin
Want to improve wellness for yourself and others? Email Richard Long at [email protected]
Lifestyle Survey
1.
Physical Activity
Do you do physical activities such as brisk walking,
bicycling or gardening for a total of 30 minutes
throughout the day for four or more days a week?
2.
Fruits and Vegetables
How many servings of fruits and vegetables do you
eat in a typical day?
___________
3.
Alcohol
On average, how many alcoholic beverages do you
drink in a week?
___________
4.
Tobacco Products
During the past year, have you used tobacco
products such as cigarettes, cigars, pipes, snuff or
chewing tobacco?
___ Yes
___ Yes
___ No
___ No
Score your responses!
Give yourself a “1” for each response that matches these:
Q1 = “yes”
____________
Q2 = 5 or more
____________
Q3 = 7 or less for women; 14 or less for men
____________
Q4 = “no”
____________
Add up the ones. This is your Optimal Lifestyle Metric (OLM) score: ____________
Turn over to learn more about what it the OLM score means.
How do you compare?
Baseline data from more than 500,000 people show:
Score
1
2
3
4
5% met only one of the components
27.5% met two components
54% met three components
13% met all four
What does it mean?
This four-question survey is very simple but it is an excellent indicator of overall
well-being. Findings in one study show that the difference between an OLM score
of 4 and 0 can add 13 years to your life.
Strive for these behaviors:
 Getting 150 minutes of physical activity each week
 Eating five servings fruits and vegetables a day
 Drinking alcohol in moderation (average of one
drink a day for women; two per day for men)
 No smoking or using other tobacco products
Get These Benefits

Lower overall mortality

Lower incidence of stroke, diabetes, heart disease and other chronic
conditions

Decreased depression, stress and other emotional health issues

Overall better functional health that allows for better quality of life and
independence.
Source: Optimal Lifestyle Adherence and 2-Year Incidence of Incidence of Chronic Conditions, a presentation by Nico
Pronk and Ray Fabius. http://wiki.siframework.org/file/view/PronkOLN-chronic+cond.pdf.