Constitution-specific Health Norms of the Sub-Health Measurement Scale (SHMS V1.0) and factors associated with suboptimal health in older adults: A nationwide cross-sectional study in China

AI Summary

Established constitution-specific SHMS V1.0 norms for 24,812 Chinese older adults, categorising health into disease, severe, moderate, mild subhealth and health.
Poor sleep quality showed strongest association with suboptimal health; regular physical activity and higher education associated with better health outcomes.
Balanced constitution individuals exhibited best overall health; findings support individualized assessment and targeted health management to promote healthy ageing.

TL;DR (AI Generated)

This study aims to establish constitution-specific health norms for Chinese older adults using the Sub-Health Measurement Scale Version 1.0 (SHMS V1.0) and to explore factors associated with suboptimal health status (SHS) among this population.

Significant differences in health scores were observed across age, sex, and constitution types, with balanced constitution individuals showing the best overall health.

Basic summary

Medicine (Baltimore). 2026 Nov 13;105(46):e51446. doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000051446.

ABSTRACT

The theory of traditional Chinese medicine constitution plays a crucial role in personalized diagnosis, treatment, and health management, and has been widely applied in China’s public health services. This study aims to establish constitution-specific health norms for Chinese older adults using the Sub-Health Measurement Scale Version 1.0 (SHMS V1.0) and to explore factors associated with suboptimal health status (SHS) among this population. A multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted across 7 geographic regions in China, with multistage cluster random sampling to recruit participants aged ≥60 years. The Constitution in Chinese Medicine Questionnaire (Elderly Edition) was used to classify participants into 9 traditional Chinese medicine constitution types, and SHMS V1.0 was used to establish mean, percentile, and demarcation norms. Data from 24,812 older adults (56.1% female) were analyzed. Health status was categorized into 5 levels: disease, severe subhealth, moderate subhealth, mild subhealth, and health, based on SHMS V1.0 total scores. Significant differences in health scores were observed across age, sex, and constitution types, with balanced constitution individuals showing the best overall health. Poor sleep quality showed the strongest association with SHS, whereas regular physical activity and higher educational attainment were associated with more favorable health status. Constitution-specific associations were found for dietary preferences, age, and body mass index, and random forest analysis identified sleep quality, regular physical activity, and education as the most important variables associated with SHS. This study provides the first constitution-specific health norms for SHMS V1.0 and enhances understanding of the factors associated with SHS among older adults. The findings may inform individualized health assessment strategies and provide a reference for developing targeted health management approaches to promote healthy aging in diverse populations.

PMID:43024261 | DOI:10.1097/MD.0000000000051446

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