If you are seeing a good primary care physician, hopefully once a year, they will perform some basic screenings based on your height and weight, blood pressure and health complaints.
I’m not a doctor, but culled information online and am sharing what I found. This is not a substitute for medical advice and I encourage you to regularly see your primary care physician who will help you know when screenings are right for you.
In general, everyone should be seeing a dentist at least annually if not twice a year. Oral hygiene is a major component of good health.
In general, your doctor will perform or recommend regular screenings for:
- Cholesterol
- A full body scan for moles or skin lesions if you have a familiar history
For women: Breast, pelvic, and pap smears
For men: Testicular
For women at 40, Mammograms are recommended unless there is a familiar history and then this is usually done earlier.
For men, at the age of 50 they recommend prostate screenings unless you are a high-risk individual then you start typically start at the age of 40.
50 is the magic number for a colonoscopy. If there is a familiar history, it is ten years earlier than the youngest family member with colon cancer.
At 65, it is recommended that men and women should have a bone density study every 2 – 5 years; this may start at the age of 60 if you’re in a high-risk population.
For those of you caring for loved ones with dementia, I will leave it up to you to determine how to manage preventative health care recommendations. I do know that I had to fight a regular battle with her care community over vitamins and supplements. I also struggled with the recommendation to add Ensure to her diet. My Mom was very clear that she wanted quality of life over quantity. I believed that she should eat what she wanted. It was the one thing she could choose to do and control.
I hope you will discuss these issues with you, or your loved one’s doctor. Early detection can not just save your life, but afford you a much better outcome. Suggested.