Half miss out on middle-age health MOT

HALF of middle-aged adults are missing out on vital health checks to spot diabetes, heart disease and dementia, figures reveal.

Of the 15.5 million men and women meant to have had an NHS ‘health MOT’ between 2013 and 2018, only 6.8 million did.

A batch of important GP check-ups should be offered to all adults aged 40 to 75 at five-year intervals to look for early signs of serious illness. It includes testing blood and blood pressure, recording patients’ height and weight and detailed questions on family history.

Councils are meant to ensure GPs send out reminder letters and advertise the service in surgery waiting rooms, but amid cuts to public health budgets many do not fund the scheme. In addition, some GPs regard the checks as a waste of time.

The latest figures, revealed by charity Diabetes UK, expose a stark variation in attendance across Britain. In Croydon, Surrey, only 18 per cent of eligible adults had the check between 2013 and 2018, while 99 per cent did in Walsall.