Understanding cardiometabolic risk
Heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes share many of the same risk factors. Doctors often look at them together as "cardiometabolic risk". Here is what that means and how it is usually assessed.
Heart and metabolic health
The main factors
Cardiometabolic risk is shaped by factors including blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, body weight and waist size, smoking, physical activity, alcohol and family history. Age and sex matter too, and cannot be changed.
Why the numbers are read together
What we knowA single result rarely tells the whole story. Someone with slightly raised cholesterol but no other risk factors may have a lower overall risk than someone with normal cholesterol who smokes and has high blood pressure. For this reason, UK practice uses risk calculators that combine several factors to estimate the chance of heart disease or stroke over the next ten years. NICE guidance sets out how this assessment should be done.
How it is assessed in the UK
In England, the free NHS Health Check is offered every five years to adults aged 40 to 74 who do not already have heart disease, diabetes, kidney disease, high blood pressure or certain other conditions. It includes blood pressure, cholesterol, height, weight and waist measurements, questions about lifestyle and family history, and sometimes a blood sugar test.
What a risk figure does and does not mean
Keep in mindA ten-year risk estimate describes what happens on average to people with similar results. It is a guide for decisions about lifestyle change or treatment, discussed with a clinician. It is not a forecast of what will happen to you.
References
- NHS. NHS Health Check. Accessed 29 September 2026.
- National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Cardiovascular disease: risk assessment and reduction, including lipid modification (NG238). Replaces CG181.
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