Health Calculators
Turn your own numbers into something you can understand, with the Indian cut offs your doctor actually uses.
Chest pain, trouble breathing, sudden weakness on one side, a fit or heavy bleeding needs help now, not an appointment.
1Enter what you know, leave the rest blank
Body mass index
Compares your weight against your height. It is the quickest way to see whether your weight is likely to be affecting your health.
Height in cmMeasure without shoes, standing straight against a wall. Five feet five inches is about 165 cm.
Weight in kgWeigh yourself in the morning, before eating, in light clothing, for the most consistent number.
Enter your height and weight to see your body mass index and what it means.
These are the Indian cut offs. Indians develop diabetes and heart disease at a lower body mass index than Europeans, so India uses 23 for overweight and 25 for obesity instead of the international 25 and 30.
Body mass index does not know the difference between muscle and fat, and it does not apply to children, to pregnancy, or to athletes.
Waist measurement
Waist tells you where fat is stored. Fat around the middle is the kind that drives diabetes and heart disease, which is why doctors often trust it more than weight.
SexThe healthy limits differ, 90 cm for men and 80 cm for women, using the Indian consensus levels.
Waist in cmNot your trouser size. Measure skin to skin with a tape. One inch is 2.54 cm.
Height in cmUsed for the waist to height ratio, which works the same way for men and women.
Enter your waist to see whether it is within the healthy limit.
Measure at the end of a normal breath out, midway between the lowest rib and the top of the hip bone, with the tape snug but not pressing in.
Blood pressure category
Tells you which band a reading falls into. High blood pressure almost never causes symptoms, so the number is the only way to know.
Upper numberThe systolic reading, the pressure while your heart is squeezing. It is the first and larger of the two numbers.
Lower numberThe diastolic reading, the pressure while your heart rests between beats. It is the second and smaller number.
Enter both numbers from your monitor to see which band the reading falls into.
Which guideline is this? These are the ACC and AHA categories. Many Indian and European guidelines call hypertension from 140 over 90 instead of 130 over 80, so a stage 1 result means watch closely and discuss, not necessarily start medicine.
Sit quietly for five minutes first, feet flat, arm supported at heart level, and do not talk during the reading. One high reading is not a diagnosis.
Diabetes risk score for India
A four question score built and tested in India to find people who already have diabetes or are close to it, without any blood test.
Age in yearsRisk rises in steps, from under 35, to 35 to 49, to 50 and above.
Waist in cmMeasured the same way as in the waist tool above, skin to skin at the level of the navel.
SexWaist points are counted differently for men and women.
Physical activityCount both work and exercise. Strenuous work means heavy manual labour. Sedentary means a desk job with no exercise at all.
Diabetes in your parentsOnly parents count in this score, not brothers, sisters or grandparents.
Answer all four questions to see your score.
This is the Indian Diabetes Risk Score from the Madras Diabetes Research Foundation. It points you toward a test. Only a blood test can confirm diabetes.
Pregnancy due date
Estimates when the baby is due, and how many weeks along you are today, from the first day of your last period.
First day of your last periodThe first day of bleeding, not the last. If your cycles are irregular or you are not sure, an ultrasound will date the pregnancy properly.
Pick the first day of your last period to see the estimated due date.
Bleeding, severe abdominal pain, a bad headache with blurred vision, swelling of the face and hands, or reduced baby movements after 28 weeks all need to be seen the same day.
This assumes a regular 28 day cycle. An early ultrasound is more accurate, and your doctor may move the date after a scan. Only about one baby in twenty arrives on the estimated day.
Daily fluid guide
A rough starting point for how much to drink in a day, based on your weight.
Weight in kgThe estimate uses about 30 ml for every kilogram you weigh, which is a common everyday guide rather than a rule.
Enter your weight to see a rough daily target.
Tea, milk, buttermilk, dal and fruit all count. Dark yellow urine usually means you need more, and clear pale urine means you are doing fine.
Target heart rate for exercise
Works out the heart rate zone worth aiming for during exercise, from your age.
Age in yearsYour maximum heart rate is estimated as 220 minus your age.
Enter your age to see your target zone.
This is the standard 220 minus age estimate. It is a guide for healthy adults, not for anyone on heart medication that controls heart rate, such as beta blockers.
Daily calorie needs
Estimates the calories your body burns at rest, and roughly how many you need in a day once your activity is added.
SexMen and women are calculated with slightly different formulas because of differences in average muscle mass.
Weight in kgYour current weight, in kilograms.
Height in cmStanding height without shoes.
Age in yearsCalorie needs fall gradually with age, even at the same weight and height.
Activity levelBe honest rather than aspirational here. Most people overestimate how active their week actually is.
Fill in the fields above to see your estimated daily calorie needs.
This is the Mifflin St Jeor equation, the one most used in clinical practice. It is an estimate, not a prescription, and it does not apply to pregnancy or to children.
Ideal body weight
Gives a reference weight for your height, using the formula doctors commonly use to size drug doses.
SexThe formula starts from a different base weight for men and women.
Height in cmStanding height without shoes.
Enter your height to see a reference weight.
This is the Devine formula. It is a reference point, not a target to chase, and body mass index or waist tell you more about your actual health.
HbA1c to average glucose
Converts an HbA1c blood test result into the estimated average glucose reading it corresponds to, in the units a glucose meter shows.
HbA1c percentThis comes from a blood test, usually written as a percentage on your lab report.
Enter your HbA1c to see the equivalent average glucose.
This is the ADAG study formula used on most Indian lab reports. It needs a real HbA1c blood test first. It does not replace one.
Ovulation and fertile window
Estimates the day you are likely to ovulate and the days around it when pregnancy is most likely, from your last period and your usual cycle length.
First day of your last periodThe first day of bleeding, not the last.
Usual cycle length in daysCounted from the first day of one period to the first day of the next. Twenty eight days is average, but anywhere from twenty one to thirty five is normal.
Enter your last period and cycle length to see your estimated fertile window.
This assumes a regular cycle and will not be accurate for anyone with irregular periods, PCOS, or a cycle that varies month to month.
Smoking exposure, pack years
Turns years smoked and cigarettes a day into pack years, the measure doctors use to judge lung and heart risk from smoking.
Years smokedTotal years you have smoked, added together if there were breaks in between.
Packs a dayA pack is 20 cigarettes. Ten cigarettes a day is 0.5 packs a day.
Enter years smoked and packs a day to see your pack year exposure.
One pack year is one pack a day for one year. It is used to decide who benefits from lung cancer screening, among other things.
Alcohol unit calculator
Works out how many standard units of alcohol are in a drink, from its volume and strength.
Volume in mlThe size of the drink you are having, in millilitres.
Strength, percent ABVAlcohol by volume, printed on the bottle or can as a percentage.
A unit is 10 ml of pure alcohol. Weekly limits and pattern of drinking matter for health more than any single drink.
Body surface area
Estimates the total surface area of your body from weight and height. Doctors use this mainly to work out drug and chemotherapy doses.
Weight in kgYour current weight, in kilograms.
Height in cmStanding height without shoes.
Enter your weight and height to see your estimated body surface area.
This is the DuBois formula. Doses based on it are set and adjusted by your treating doctor, never by this page.
How to take a blood pressure reading you can trust
Most home readings are wrong for reasons that are easy to fix. Six minutes of care gives you a number worth showing a doctor.
- Empty your bladder first, and avoid tea, coffee, tobacco and exercise for thirty minutes before.
- Sit with your back supported and both feet flat on the floor, legs uncrossed, for five quiet minutes.
- Rest your arm on a table so the cuff sits at the level of your heart, and put the cuff on bare skin.
- Do not talk, and do not look at your phone, while the machine is inflating.
- Take two readings a minute apart and write down the average of the two.
- Measure at the same time each day, for example morning and evening, and bring the whole record to your consultation.
What to do with these numbers
A calculator is a prompt, not a verdict. Here is the sensible order of action.
- Write the number down with today's date. A single reading tells you far less than a trend.
- Repeat it a few times over a week or two under the same conditions before drawing any conclusion.
- If a result lands in an orange or red band, book a consultation rather than searching for more calculators.
- Take the record with you, along with your medicines and your last reports.
- Change one habit at a time and give it six weeks. Numbers move slowly and steadily, not overnight.
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Emergency numbers in India
Save these in your phone now, not when you need them. Tap any number to call it.
Where to read more
Public health sources written for patients rather than for doctors, and kept up to date.
Important: Everything in Teleprac patient resources is general health education. It does not give you a diagnosis and it cannot replace examination by a qualified doctor, because it does not know your age, your reports, your pregnancy or the other medicines you take. Please do not start, stop or change any medicine on your own. Teleprac Healthcare is not liable for decisions made on the basis of this information. In an emergency, call your local emergency number or go to the nearest hospital immediately.