A visit to the doctors could tell you any number of things about your health such as if you're blood pressure is too high, or if you need to cut down on your drinking.

But in the future this could reach even further, extending to a simple computer test that could predict when you will die.

Researchers in the UK are embarking on a mammoth project which aims to bring together enormous datasets to pinpoint exactly when your number might be up.

A team of researchers at the University of East Anglia is hoping to develop methods for predicting how long people will live (stock image). The group will bring together 'big data' on lifestyle and disease, which will also focus on the impact of long-term health conditions and their treatments

By compiling information from health datasets, the team at the University of East Anglia hope to develop methods for predicting how long people will live, and so help them to spend their time, and money, more wisely.

Earlier this year, the team received an £800,000 ($1.1 million) grant from the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries, the UK body which trains and regulates professionals involved in risk management.

As part of the four-year project, the UEA team will bring together 'big data' on lifestyle and disease, with the aim of building a model which can predict life expectancy and a focus on the impact of long-term health conditions and their treatments.

'We want to develop software tools that use big data routinely collected by healthcare providers to forecast longevity,' explained Professor Elena Kulinskaya, from UEA's School of Computing Sciences and who is leading the research.

Combining data from huge health and lifestyle datasets (stock image), the project aims to generate statistical trends on lifespans based on largescale populations, which coul ebe used to benchmark people against

'When we talk about big data what we mean is data that is vast, complex and difficult to analyse.

'We want to be able to use it to see statistical life expectancy trends, based on large-scale population-based data collected over the long term.'

THE DATA BEHIND YOUR DEMISE Researchers at the University of East Anglia hope to develop computer models to predict how long people will live. Thanks to a an £800,000 grant, the four-year project will bring together 'big data' on lifestyle and disease, with the aim of building a model which can predict life expectancy and a focus on the impact of long-term health conditions and their treatments. The collaboration will involve a range of experts, including data analysts, computer scientists and medical staff at UEA's medical school. In addition, the team will be assisted by technical experts at insurance company Aviva. It is hoped that armed with the knowledge of lifespan, people will be empowered to make better financial decisions around pension and succession planning. The project could also shed more light on the long-term impact of preventative treatments for health, such as taking statins to reduce cholesterol and to reduce a person's risk of cardiovascular disease. Advertisement

The project will involve collaboration between a range of experts, including data analysts, computer scientists and medical staff at UEA's medical school. In addition, the team will be assisted by technical experts at insurance company Aviva.

According to Professor Kulinskaya, the group wants to identify key factors influencing how long we will live for, including lifestyle choices, medical conditions and treatments or interventions, such as stopping smoking.

'We are particularly interested in understanding how various chronic diseases and their treatments impact life expectancy,' she added.

The UEA team believes that armed with the knowledge of when a person is set to meet their maker could empower them to make better financial decisions around pension planning and succession planning.

But it could also shed more light on the long-term impact of preventative treatments for health, such as taking statins to reduce cholesterol and to reduce a person's risk of cardiovascular disease.

'To be able to plan for retirement, and to understand how much you can spend, it is good to have some idea of your life expectancy. Our estimates of life expectancy will only be true on average, not at the individual level,' explained Professor Kulinskaya.

The move is one of a number of moves to embrace big data to improve health outcomes.

In 2012, the UK government launched the 100,000 genomes project.

It could also help to shed more light on the long-term impact of lifestyle factors such as diet (illustrated left) as well as preventative treatments for health, such as taking statins (stock image of tablets right) to curb cholesterol and reduce a person's risk of cardiovascular disease

This aims to collect genetic information from thousands of people in order to map the genetic variants in the human genome which may increase a person's risk of disease.

By using this information, patients could receive counselling based on their baseline risk of getting a disease and could take appropriate action, such as changing their diet or taking long-term medication.

However, concerns have been raised that making such longevity information available to insurers could risk a two-tiered system.

It could potentially mean those who are genetically predisposed to chronic disease, or whose socioeconomic circumstances increase their risk of disease, effectively makes them uninsurable.

Ethics watchdogs continue to monitor developments in the area and issue advice to government, such as the 2015 report from the Nuffield Council on Bioethics.