If you want to maintain good health, getting regular health screenings for a variety of diseases can be extraordinarily helpful. This is especially true for middle-aged individuals and beyond. Many preventable deaths have occurred because patients didn’t listen to their doctors and get the quick and easy screenings that they recommended.

Medical Screenings

Getting appropriate screenings is a simple, yet critical, step in maintaining a clean bill of health and living a longer life. These tests detect serious issues when they are at their earliest stages, so successful treatment is actually quite likely. They do this by providing critical information to you and your doctor so you can either remain healthy or begin treatments and medications for health issues that such screenings have discovered.

Getting Started

While many screenings are recommended for folks of particular ages, it is never too late to get checked out for different illnesses if you missed out at the appropriate time. Simply visit your health care provider and learn which tests will be most beneficial to you.

For example, both men and women should screen for obesity by having their body mass index, or BMI, calculated. Cholesterol levels, blood pressure, sugar levels, and even mental health, should also be checked annually once a person reaches mid-adulthood. The first two tests listed actually help to prevent heart disease from progressing, which is critical. It is actually one of the leading causes of death in the country.

Another lifesaving screening is the colon cancer test. It is a preventable and treatable form of the disease, but it produces few symptoms. That means screening is one of the best methods for detecting and treating polyps while they are still non-cancerous and can be removed. Consider speaking to health professionals such as Gastro Health to determine when you should consider receiving a colon cancer test.

Additional Tests for Men and Women

It is important that men take the extra time to test for prostate cancer and abdominal aortic aneurysms, which typically only affects males. That said, women should certainly test for osteoporosis, or thinning of the bones, in addition to mammograms and pap smears to detect breast and cervical cancer, respectively.

In conclusion, getting routine health screenings at the designated times can help your physician treat benign diseases and even serious health conditions in their earliest stages. This means you are more likely to live a longer, healthier life without many health complications. Get started today by asking your health care provider what tests you should take at your age and with your history.