[web2py] How do I check if a user account is blocked/disabled?

[Carl]

I know I can use this code:
users = db(db.auth_user.id==userId).select(db.auth_user.ALL)
    if users:
        return users[0]['registration_key'] not in ['disabled',
'blocked']
    return False

to check if an account is disabled.

Is there a function/method I can call to check this instead? It feels
odd to be writing code so intimate with "under the hood" details.
Similarly, do I write directly to the db to update 'registration_key'
to "disabled" or is there a method for that too?