--- title: A Limp Handshake Could Predict an Early Death Say Scientists description: A new large-scale study suggests that grip strength could serve as a “simple, inexpensive” test for heart disease and other health risks canonical: https://time.com/3858420/limp-handshake-early-death/ author: Noah Rayman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-05-14T12:06:40.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T07:11:57.314Z article:section: Health og:title: A Limp Handshake Could Predict an Early Death Say Scientists og:description: A new large-scale study suggests that grip strength could serve as a “simple, inexpensive” test for heart disease and other health risks og:url: https://time.com/3858420/limp-handshake-early-death/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcd55963b747fde2a/6987efb4f887dc6b37e8e781/450741727.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: 450741727 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: A Limp Handshake Could Predict an Early Death Say Scientists twitter:description: A new large-scale study suggests that grip strength could serve as a “simple, inexpensive” test for heart disease and other health risks twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcd55963b747fde2a/6987efb4f887dc6b37e8e781/450741727.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # A Limp Handshake Could Predict an Early Death Say Scientists  by [Noah Rayman](/author/noah-rayman/)  ## Noah Rayman May 14, 2015 12:06 PM CUT  A fist holding a wrench up triumphantly A fist holding a wrench up triumphantlyCaspar Benson—Getty Images/fStop  by [Noah Rayman](/author/noah-rayman/)  ## Noah Rayman May 14, 2015 12:06 PM CUT A new large-scale study suggests that grip strength could serve as a “simple, inexpensive” test for heart disease and other health risks. The study, published in the [medical journal _The Lancet_ ](http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736%2814%2962000-6/abstract "undefined")on Wednesday, found that people whose grip strength declined the fastest faced higher risks of health problems, including strokes and heart disease. In fact, the study found, grip strength can be better than blood pressure at predicting risk, According to the study, every 11lb drop in grip strength was correlated with a 16 percent rise in the risk of early death. The researchers, who studied more than 140,000 people in 17 countries between 2003 and 2009, say more work is necessary to further explain the connection between grip and health risks. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3858420/limp-handshake-early-death/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3858420/limp-handshake-early-death/"},"headline":"A Limp Handshake Could Predict an Early Death Say Scientists","datePublished":"2015-05-14T12:06:40.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T07:11:57.314Z","description":"Grip strength could determine chances of an early death.","url":"https://time.com/3858420/limp-handshake-early-death/","keywords":["Research"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcd55963b747fde2a/6987efb4f887dc6b37e8e781/450741727.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Noah Rayman","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/noah-rayman/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcd55963b747fde2a/6987efb4f887dc6b37e8e781/450741727.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"450741727","caption":"450741727","creditText":"Caspar Benson—Getty Images/fStop","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/research/","name":"Research"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3858420/limp-handshake-early-death/","name":"A Limp Handshake Could Predict an Early Death Say Scientists"}}]}] ```