High Blood Pressure and Cholesterol Levels and Your Term Life Insurance

Overshadowed by weight loss fads and trends, lowering blood pressure and cholesterol are among the most popular health resolutions that people place on themselves. Both are leading contributors to heart disease as nearly one-in-four Americans have unhealthy cholesterol levels and another one-in-three have high blood pressure. Combined with your age, gender, weight, and lifestyle, these are critical factors that directly affect how much you pay — and overpay — for term life insurance.
Any time you improve your health by losing weight, lowering your cholesterol or blood pressure, you should contact your term life insurance company and request a lower rate. More than likely, you will be subject to a medical examination to confirm your health, however, you have nothing to lose. Your current rates are already locked in and cannot be increased if the results are to the contrary. After the examination, if you are not rewarded with lower rates, it may be in your interest to shop around for a new policy.

If you have a history of high blood pressure and cholesterol and take medications to maintain healthy levels, you may still qualify for preferred rates. Term life insurance companies are more concerned about your actual levels when you apply for coverage than how you manage them. A blood pressure level at or above 140 over 90 is generally considered to be high (hypertension), as is a cholesterol level above 200. Being just over the threshold for each does not independently affect your rates; rather it's in combination with other negative underwriting factors such as obesity and smoking when your rates suffer. An experienced term life insurance agent can help you find the right policy at the best price as different insurance companies assign different rates to the same health risks.

In 2007 as you continue on your road to better health, take notice that your life insurance rates are likely to improve as you lower your blood pressure and cholesterol levels. Savings are only realized though when you compare quotes from multiple companies, or request a review of your current policy. Remember, term life insurance rates are always changing and the cost of the same policy can vary by hundreds of dollars among different companies.