Regular visits to your doctor are worth more than a pound of cure. It’s one efficient way to avoid incurring any illness that may harm your health and well-being. As a child, your parents made sure that you visit your doctor regularly to make sure everything is fine. However, as you grow up you may have set that habit aside.
This is one of the biggest mistakes that adults usually commit. If you visit your doctor on a regular basis, you can help them identify risk factors to your health and prevent these illnesses from getting worse. Logically, if diseases are detected at an early stage the treatments usually work really well. Keep in mind that a short trip to your doctor is one way to the roads of living a long, healthy life!
Prevention Check-up
Your regular check-up with your doctor will depend on several factors like age, sex and family medical history. Your visit may include but is not limited to the following:
- Tests to check your overall health – eyes, blood, urine, etc.
- Blood pressure, cholesterol level and weight may be assessed
- Diet and lifestyle will be discussed
- Booster shots & immunizations
- Screenings to check your possibility of having or developing serious medical conditions
- Depending on age, tests for HIV and other sexually transmitted disease may be conducted
- Evaluation of mental health
Concerns for Men
Men are usually checked for their weight, blood pressure and other basic assessments. For men who are 50 years and below who have a family history, a rectal test for abnormal bumps in the prostrate will be conducted. A specific blood test may also take place to determine if you have prostate cancer. For men who are between the ages of 65 and 75 who are and were smokers, you will undergo an abdominal check-up to make sure that you do not have an enlargement in your aorta. The weakening of the lining in your aorta can lead to life threatening diseases if not properly treated.
Concerns for Women
Just like men, women are checked for their weight, blood pressure and other basic assessments. Their specific check-ups include a test for cervical cancer every one to three years. They are also tested for breast cancer for any unusual lumps that they may feel in your breast. From the age of 40 and younger, a breast cancer screening with mammogram is highly recommended. This should be done every one to two years to ensure that you are safe. At the age of 65, your doctor may advise you to undergo bone density test to check if you have osteoporosis. This condition involves brittle and fragile bones that typically happen to older women. However, it may also occur in women that belong to younger age groups.