December 18, 2022
The United States faces epidemics of inactivity, obesity, and diabetes. Annual biometric screenings could help.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 70% of medical decisions depend on laboratory test results. Biometric screening is all about scores and numbers.
Studies have shown that people who participate in yearly biometric screenings see improvement in important health metrics year over year.
In this article, we will tell you everything you need to know about the practical aspects of biometric screening. This information should help large and small employers, as well as employees, see the benefits of biometric screening.
This article was written by Dr. Slava Fuzayloff from www.Walk-In-Clinic-NY.com Dr. Fuzayloff has over 20 years of experience as a primary care doctor, travel doctor, and STD specialist.
Biometric screening is a popular component of workplace wellness programs. It’s a quick, convenient, and condensed health status checkup that’s often done at the workplace or a local clinic.
It helps patient to know their important baseline health scores.
It’s not a substitute for an annual physical exam by a primary care provider.
Biometric screening does not diagnose disease, but it does uncover health risk factors (as well as chronic diseases) that can lead to serious or life-threatening conditions.
So, the most important benefit of biometric screening is that it allows employees and their employers to immediately know more about their health and any risks to it.
Here we will explain the components of biometric screening.
At a biometric exam, various health indicators will be tested:
✓ Blood pressure
✓ Lipids (total cholesterol, HDL, LDL, and triglycerides)
✓ BMI (body mass index)
✓ Waist circumference
✓ Height
✓ Weight
Each of these, if the results are unsatisfactory, can be a risk factor for heart attack and stroke, so let’s talk about them in more detail!
This test is done with a regular blood pressure cuff. Blood pressure is recorded as two numbers (systolic and diastolic) in the form of a fraction; e.g., 120/80.
What do the blood pressure numbers mean?
The first number, called the systolic blood pressure, is the highest pressure in your arteries when the heart beats. The second number, called the diastolic blood pressure, is the pressure in the arteries when the heart is at rest (between beats).
What is considered abnormal blood pressure?
Any number over 120/80 is considered abnormal. There are different levels of abnormal (which is beyond the scope of this article).
Biometric screening only alerts the person being screen that their blood pressure is normal or abnormal.
What are the negative consequences of high blood pressure?
High blood pressure can put you at risk for different serious health conditions, including heart attack, stroke, and kidney failure.
What’s the next step if blood pressure is abnormal during biometric screening?
If blood pressure is out of range during biometric screening, the next step is to follow up with a primary care doctor for detailed professional advice on how to get it under control.
While waiting to be seen by a primary care doctor, you should reduce your salt intake.
There’s no need to be overly concerned, because elevated blood pressure can be effectively treated with medication and lifestyle changes.
A lipid panel test, common referred to as a cholesterol test, checks for fats in the blood.
What does the lipid panel test consist of?
It measures three kinds of fat: HDL (“good” cholesterol), LDL (“bad’ cholesterol), and triglycerides
LDL is “bad” cholesterol, the main cause of plaque buildup, and the biggest risk factor for heart disease. The lower the LDL number, the better.
HDL is “good” cholesterol. HDL removes bad cholesterol from the blood and deposits it in the liver. It’s then excreted from the body. The higher the HDL number, the better.
Triglycerides are another type of fat stored in the fat cell, and they’re part of “bad” cholesterol. An elevated level of triglycerides is a risk factor for heart disease, but it’s not as bad as high LDL.
What’s considered an abnormal cholesterol number?
If a lipid panel test is done after you’ve fasted for 9–12 hours, we can reliably analyze your levels of LDL, HDL, and triglycerides and your total cholesterol number.
If a lipid test was done without your having fasted, we can analyze only total cholesterol and HDL, because the other numbers can be affected by recent food intake.
Here are the normal ranges:
✓ LDL: <130
✓ HDL: >40
✓ Triglycerides: <150
✓ Total cholesterol: <200
You want a higher level of HDL and lower levels of total cholesterol, LDL, and triglycerides.
What are the consequences of high cholesterol?
High cholesterol produces no symptoms. However, it is a risk factor for heart attack and stroke. Reduction of cholesterol (LDL and triglycerides) is one (but not the only) part of the strategy for preventing heart disease and stroke.
What is the next step if cholesterol is elevated during biometric screening?
If cholesterol is out of range, it is necessary to follow up with a primary care provider to determine your other risk factors for heart disease and stroke.
Depending on the degree of abnormalities of the different cholesterol components and other risk factors—including your age and your family history of heart attack and stroke—your doctor will advise you whether you need to go on medication or diet changes alone are sufficient.
While waiting to be seen by a primary care practitioner, read about a low cholesterol diet and begin following it.
Biometric screening includes a blood glucose test. This is a blood test.
What is a blood glucose test?
A blood glucose test is an initial screening test for diabetes.
What is considered an abnormal glucose level?
Your blood glucose level should be under 100 if the test was done after 8 hours of fasting or under 200 if it was done randomly.
What are the consequences of high blood glucose?
Glucose is the main source of energy for the body, but high levels of it can damage the body and lead to diabetes. Prediabetes and diabetes increase the risk for heart disease and stroke.
What is the next step if the blood glucose test is abnormal during biometric screening?
If the blood glucose level is out of range, it is necessary to follow up with a primary care physician to do a more sophisticated test, such as an HbA1C test, which reveals whether your blood glucose levels really are abnormal (it could be a one-time elevation) and, if so, how advanced the abnormality is.
The doctor also usually looks at other factors to decide how aggressive your treatment should be.
If you want to be extra safe, follow the 1800 ADA diet while you’re waiting for the primary care appointment.
Biometric screening includes calculation of your BMI, which is a measure of whether you’re overweight.
What is the BMI?
The body mass index (BMI) is a measure of body fat based on height and weight.
The BMI is interpreted using standard weight categories. It is the same for men and women of all ages and body types.
What is considered an abnormal BMI?
Anyone with a BMI between 25 and 30 is classified as overweight, and anyone with a BMI over 30 is classified as obese.
The BMI number can be inaccurate, since it doesn’t take into account variations in body build, ethnicity, and bone density.
It is used widely because it is an easy, inexpensive tool and helps people get a sense of where they fall in comparison to the ideal BMI range.
What are the consequences of a high BMI?
People with a high BMI are at increased risk of developing diabetes, high blood pressure, heart attack, and stroke
What is the next step for people with a high BMI during the biometric screening?
The higher the BMI, the higher the risk of developing weight-related illnesses, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, osteoarthritis, certain type of cancers, heart attack, and stroke.
The BMI is not the main indicator of health. It is possible to have a high BMI and still be healthy! (Examples include muscular people, such as athletes.)
If you concerned about a high BMI, see your primary care doctor for a complete evaluation of all your risk factors.
Biometric screening includes measuring your waist circumference. This checks for abdominal fat, which is considered the “worst of the worst.”
What is waist circumference?
Waist circumference, unlike BMI (which checks for overall body fat), checks for abdominal fat, which is considered the most active (in a negative way) fat. Read this article at Harvard Health Publishing here.
What is considered an abnormal waist circumference?
The waist circumference number is gender specific.
Any waist circumference of more than 40 for cis men and more than 35 for cis women is considered abnormal.
What are the consequences of a high waist circumference?
What are the consequences of a high waist circumference?
What is the next step for people with a high waist circumference?
A high waist circumference can be a sign of overweight and put you at risk for weight-related illnesses (high blood pressure, diabetes, osteoarthritis, certain type of cancers, and heart disease). A primary care doctor needs to be consulted for a complete evaluation of all risk factors and a determination of the need for lifestyle changes.
Biometric screening checks for important baseline health scores. Most biometric tests can directly or, more commonly, indirectly whether you are at higher risk for certain conditions.
In this table, you can see some common medical conditions and the biometric screening tests that can check for them.
Health condition |
Biometric test |
| High blood pressure | Blood pressure check
BMI |
| Diabetes | Glucose test
BMI Waist circumference |
| Heart disease | Glucose test
BMI Waist circumference Lipid panel |
| Stroke | Glucose test
BMI Waist circumference Lipid panel |
| Increased risk of certain cancers, including colon, breast, ovaries, uterus, and gallbladder | BMI
Waist circumference |
| Osteoarthritis | BMI |
| Gallbladder disease | BMI
Waist circumference Lipid panel |
| Sleep apnea | BMI
Waist circumference |
Here are the things to know about biometric screening preparation.
Behave normally
Sticking with your usual routine before biometric screening is very important so you can ensure accurate screening that represents your health.
This means you should eat the things you usually eat, exercise as you normally exercise, and work as you usually do.
Fast (do not eat) if you can
The biometric screening company might ask you to fast for 8–12 hours before the screening. This is one of the best ways to ensure accurate results on the blood glucose (sugar) and cholesterol tests.
You can drink water, black coffee, and tea.
Limit sugar intake
Pay attention to your sugar intake the day and night before the screening, because it can affect your results. While it is advised to stay on your regular diet, it’s not a good idea to binge on sweet food the night before.
Limit alcohol intake
If you drink too much alcohol the night before the biometric screening, your body will try to recover by removing the alcohol from your system and won’t necessarily work in the way that’s normal for you. At the same time, one or, at most, two drinks the night before might not be an issue.
Limit emotional stress
Stress can affect blood pressure, elevating it falsely. For that reason, try to not schedule your appointment after a stressful event.
Know your medication list
Take a list of your medications (names and dosages) with you, because some medications can cause abnormal screening results.
Talk to medical professionals beforehand
Talk to a medical professional beforehand if you have any questions or concerns about the health screening. Tell them in advance if you have trouble with needles so they can take extra care.
Biometric screening is very quick; it can take 10–20 minutes. Please expect the following during the exam:
1. A short health questionnaire about your medical history. It is usually collected before the screening.
2. Your height and weight will be checked.
3. A tape measure will be used to check your waist circumference (and possibly your hip circumference).
4. Your blood pressure will be checked using a blood pressure cuff.
5. Blood will be drawn from the vein for the glucose and cholesterol tests.
Remember, biometric screening is not done to establish a diagnosis or treat specific medical problem, but rather to assess risk factors.
A medical professional will discuss your results with you (and available online) in a few days. The areas that need to be further checked by a primary care doctor (if any) will be indicated.
Here are some benefits employers get from biometric screening:
Healthier employees and fewer missed workdays
Most employers request biometric screening for these reasons:
✓ To check on the overall health of their work force
✓ To catch and monitor health conditions that may lead to more serious health issues
Employees can use biometric screening results to begin making healthier choices that lead to fewer missed days and often better productivity at work. So, biometric screening helps create informed and healthy employees.
Improve work safety
For employers in physical labor industries, biometric screening can improve safety by detecting warning signs of medical conditions that can contribute to work injuries and accidents.
Adjust health benefits
Since biometric screening can provide employers with aggregate data about their workforce’s overall health, it will help them make adjustments in their health plan benefits to address problematic health issues.
Improve company morale
Biometric screening conveys the message to employees that the company values their health (or well-being) and contributions. It will lead to a more engaged and unified workforce.
Understandably, employees have concerns about other people (especially employers) knowing their health information.
The health care privacy law (the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA) protects employees’ right to privacy regarding their health care information. Employers will never receive the results of individual tests, since that would violate HIPAA.
Employers will get only aggregate results of biometric screening. (“Aggregate” means that the results of many employees are combined and it’s not possible to tell anything about individual employees.) Usually, employers get a compiled report of aggregate, anonymous data. That data gives employers a high-level view of employee health and helps them make adjustments in health plans they provide and in safety measures at workplaces.
Here is a list of benefits that employees get from biometric screening:
It can detect and help employees prevent serious health conditions
Biometric health screening can detect some health risk factors that can be further addressed by a primary care doctor.
Many medical conditions can be asymptomatic in the beginning, but if they’re detected, they can be treated with diet and medication to prevent serious consequences.
They might get financial incentives from their employer
Many companies offer employees financial incentives for getting biometric health screening done. This could be a one-time payment, a reduced premium for health insurance, or even a one-time coupon for a farm market.
It helps them make healthier choices
The results of biometric screening give people information about their health that helps them start to make healthier choices regarding food and exercise.
Biometric screening exams offered by employers are always voluntary.
Employers usually give employees a few options for where to get an exam, and the location of the exam is usually at the employee discretion.
The following are some places where biometric screening is done:
✓ On-site in the workplace
✓ At a primary care clinic
✓ At an urgent care clinic
✓ In a lab
✓ At home, using a biometric screening kit
We will compare biometric screening locations based on the following criteria:
✓ Convenience
✓ Appointment availability
✓ Qualifications of the staff who do the screening and interpret the results
✓ Abnormal results follow-up if it’s necessary
On-site
Many big and small companies offer on-site biometric screening.
Advantages
✓ Convenience
✓ Larger companies can negotiate the screening price
Disadvantages
✓ Not all employees can attend on-site screening on the days available
✓ Some people aren’t comfortable doing screening on-site because of privacy concerns
✓ The screening is done by technicians and the results are explained by a midlevel provider at best. Usually, the results come in the form of prewritten, standard explanations of different test results and scores.
✓ There is no follow-up for abnormal results; you need to see your primary care provider
Primary care physician office
Advantages
✓ Some people are more comfortable doing health screening in their health care provider office.
✓ Abnormal results will be explained and addressed by the doctor, so no follow-up with another physician is necessary
Disadvantages
✓ There may be a longer wait time because of the need to get an appointment to be seen by a primary care provider
Urgent care clinic
Advantages
✓ Convenience: there are convenient urgent care clinic locations in most neighborhoods
✓ There usually are a lot of appointment slots to choose from
Disadvantages
✓ A midlevel practitioner—nurse practitioner (NP) or physician’s assistant (PA)—performs the screening and explains abnormalities
✓ There’s no follow-up for abnormal results; you need to see your primary care physician
Lab
Some big national labs (e.g., Quest and LabCorp) offer biometric screening.
Advantages
✓ There are many locations (in most zip codes), so the screening can be done conveniently, in your neighborhood
✓ Usually there are many appointment times available
Disadvantages
✓ The screening is done by a technician and the results are explained by midlevel provider (PA or NP) at best; sometimes, the results come in the form of prewritten standard explanations different test results and scores
✓ There’s no follow-up; you need to see a doctor if you have any abnormal test results
Your home
Advantages
✓ Convenience; there’s no need to schedule an appointment or go anywhere
Disadvantages
✓ Not everyone is comfortable following the directions for a blood pressure check and doing a fingerstick (or blood draw) for the glucose test and lipid panel
✓ It takes longer for the results to come back
✓ Abnormal results are usually explained using a prewritten, standard explanation of different test scores
✓ You will need to see a doctor if you have any abnormal results.
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