Like most things in medicine and healthcare, the Vitality Score isn’t perfect. Here are a few things that we watch out for:
- The Vitality Score needs to be a fasting test (water only, over 10 hours). Even a small amount of food or calorie beverage can make the results inaccurate.
- The Vitality Score doesn’t fully account for genetic variations. Some people have high blood pressure, elevated weight, low HDL cholesterol or other conditions based on their genetics rather than their metabolic status.
- The Vitality Score can underestimate your metabolic status. As with any test, the VS will sometimes not capture things perfectly. Some lab tests, for example blood sugar and cholesterol, can vary somewhat even if you are fasting. Also, our blood pressure can change from minute to minute and so normal variability can cause the VS to be lower than expected. The take home message is don’t sweat it if your VS seems to jump around. Remember, it’s only a snapshot and it’s the changes over time that matter.
Your PowerME provider will take these potential issues into account and discuss them with you. The good news is that the Vitality Score is a composite score, which means that it takes a number of values into account, not just one so it’s a big picture test.
If you have any questions, make sure to bring them up with your provider.
