Sheffield folk 'clueless' about vital organs - do you know what your pancreas does?

Sheffield people are clueless about about the role of their vital organs and the best foods needed to fuel their bodies, according to a new survey for Bupa UK.
Bupa UK health asessmentsBupa UK health asessments
Bupa UK health asessments

Sixty per cent don’t know the basic functions of their kidneys, which filter out waste products and toxins for excretion, and 44 per cent don’t know heir lungs help rid the body of carbon dioxide.

Eighty three per cent of people from Sheffield don’t know the main functions of their pancreas, which converts the food we eat into fuel and regulates blood sugar.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Worryingly, almost one in five don’t know that milk and dairy products are good sources of calcium

The good news is that people do want to change - a total of 87 per cent of Sheffield’s respondents admit that they could brush up on their anatomy knowledge and 59per cent would commit to a health and wellbeing regime if it was tailored for them.

The survey was commissioned by private health care company Bupa UK, which has launched a new range of health assessments designed to help people engage with their health. See For further information on Bupa health assessments please visit bupa.co.uk/health/health-assessments

This worryingly low body IQ extends to not understanding the best types of food needed to fuel their bodies.

Bupa UK health asessmentsBupa UK health asessments
Bupa UK health asessments
Hide Ad
Hide Ad

A quarter of people from Sheffield don’t know that milk and dairy products are good sources of calcium, and over a third confess to being clueless about which food groups provide the best nutrients for their vital organs.

When it comes to knowing how different organs impact and affect their health, the national study of 2,000 people highlighted some factors that might explain this current lack of body intelligence in Sheffield.

Even when people are looking for help or advice with a personal health issue or concern, less than a third of people from Sheffield will typically turn to a doctor in the first instance and a fifth will first to their partner.

This dependence on advice from friends and family could be due to the fact that an alarming 44 per cent struggle to understand medical language and terminology.

Bupa UK health asessmentsBupa UK health asessments
Bupa UK health asessments
Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The study was commissioned by Bupa UK to highlight its new health assessments that are designed to help people engage with and improve their health.

Bupa UK’s range of health assessments help give people a detailed picture of where their health is at currently, with guidance on how to move it in the right direction for the future.

Commenting on the research findings, Dr Lizzie Tuckey, Medical Director, Bupa UK said: "The beginning of the year is typically when people focus on improving their personal health. But these results show that before attempting to improve our wellbeing, we first need to improve our basic understanding about how our body works and the food we need to fuel it.

“Our busy working lives and not getting enough expert health advice from the correct sources is clearly contributing to this low ‘Body IQ’.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“A basic handle of biology is crucial, but equally important is an understanding of our own bodies and what we each need to do to look after ourselves properly.

"Having advice and treatment that is tailored specifically to us helps address this. Our range of new health assessments provide the expertise people need to assess their own bodies and make healthy lifestyle changes. An individual, tailored approach is key to helping people achieve healthier, happier lifestyles."

As part of the new health assessments Bupa UK’s trained team gives personalised, practical lifestyle advice to help prevent future health issues and this includes ongoing support. These new health assessments are the latest new product developed to help address changing healthcare needs and demands of people across the UK.

Sheffield’s residents are clearly trying to make efforts to improve their knowledge but they often find it’s hard to get the right guidance.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Over half of people from Sheffield confessed they avoid celebrity health regimes because they’re too difficult to follow and over a fifth admitted that, despite their popularity, they typically struggle to understand how personal health apps and digital fitness monitors work.Other notable findings from the research showed over a quarter of people from Sheffield said they use websites and blogs when looking for tips and advice on improving their health and wellbeing·

Bupa is an international healthcare group, serving 29 million customers in over 190 countries. It is a private healthcare company, as opposed to the UK's National Health Service, which is a tax-funded healthcare system.

For further information on Bupa health assessments please visit bupa.co.uk/health/health-assessments