INTRODUCTION. Quality of life (QOL) – and individual’s perception of his or her own health – has become the subject of great interest in Lithuania. THE AIM OF THE STUDY. The aim of the study was to assess the determinants of the quality of life and self-rated health and to clarify the importance of perceived health in determining the risk of death among middle-aged Kaunas population. MAIN RESULTS. Quality of life in middle-aged Kaunas women was found to be lower than in men, except for the spirituality domain. Older age showed worse quality of life. Low income and lower educational level, manual work, living alone, unemployment, disability and retirement were associated with worse QOL in middle-aged Kaunas population. Overweight and obese men had lower probability of rating their overall QOL worse as compared to men with normal body mass. Diabetes, coronary heart disease and smoking were associated with worse QOL in men. Moderate-to-heavy alcohol consumption was associated with lower risk of having worse QOL as compared to light alcohol consumption group among men. Obesity for women increased the odds of having worse QOL as compared to women with normal body mass. Moderate-to-heavy alcohol consumption was associated with better QOL in the physical and independence domains and with worse QOL in the social relationships domain among women. Smoking and inadequate physical activity were associated with worse QOL among women. CHD increased women’s probability of scoring lower in... [to full text]