OBJECTIVES: We aimed to determine the acceptability of health problems with age using the EQ VAS and analyse the influence of respondents’ health status, socio-demographic characteristics and situational factors on acceptable health (AH) in different ages.METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional survey on a convenience sample from the general population (N=200). Respondents indicated the AH on the EQ VAS for ages between 30 to 80 years in 10-year intervals. Respondents were asked about their current health, health risks, demographic background and how they imagined health problems in different ages. We evaluated AH by estimating linear multilevel models including a random intercept (estimated at age 30) and a random slope for different ages. Robust standard errors were clustered at the individual respondent level. RESULTS: Acceptable EQ VAS scores were available for 194 respondents (mean age=42.8 years, range: 19-93, 58% female). Preliminary analysis suggested a linear relationship between age and the acceptable deterioration rate (ADR) of health. The level of AH at age 30 (random intercept) and its ADR with age (random slope) did not correlate. The level of AH at age 30 was higher (p<0.05) for older respondents and for ones with higher current EQ VAS scores, while it was lower for those who imagined others and not themselves during the evaluation task. The ADR of health was greater (p<0.05) for respondents with worse current health (lower EQ VAS scores) and sedentary lifestyle, while it was smaller for high risk drinkers. The ADR was greater for respondents who imagined others, and also for future ages compared to respondents’ own age. CONCLUSIONS: In addition to age, AH depends on respondents’ age, lifestyle and the framing of acceptability questions. The EQ VAS was adequate measure to capture the individual variability in the assessment of AH at different ages.