Dear men, it’s important to get your health checked up regularly if you want early detection of any disease. This becomes even more essential if you want the ‘golden years’ - the years after 45 - to be free from health issues and stress.
Better Safe Than Sorry
Early screenings not only save money in the long run but can also save your life or make any disease easier to manage if the diseases are caught early on.Dr Anurag Sharma, a Panchkula-based interventional cardiologist
Need For Health Screening For Men
Men in 30s usually suffer from obesity, heart disease, joint pain, tiredness due to sedentary lifestyle, stress, lack of exercise and eating habits. So the 30s is a very good time to start taking control of health in your hands by monitoring body functions by regular tests and then accordingly modifying lifestyle and diet changes.Dr Prashant Shetty , Executive Director (Biochemistry, Haematology & Immunoassay Dept.) at iGenetic Diagnostics
Avni Kaul, nutritionist and wellness coach, founder of Nutri Activania, certified diabetes educator from Project Hope and International Diabetes Federation, Delhi, says, health screenings for men can be as basic as getting a monthly blood pressure check - that takes under five minutes!
You can actually keep many serious health problems at bay just by getting blood pressure monitored regularly. If your BP reading is normal, you may need monthly BP screenings. But if it is high frequent checks are recommended - almost every week or so.Avni Kaul
The Vital 5 Tests
We spoke to leading experts who were unanimous in their advocacy of 5 health screenings that men in their 30s must get done.
CBC or Complete Blood Count
CBC or Complete Blood Count gives a basic idea about wellbeing and detects anaemia (Low Haemoglobin).
Anaemia usually will lead to feeling of tiredness, less energetic. Men having low hemoglobin should go for further investigations so as to treat the condition.Avni Kaul
Make sure to check for hepatitis C antibodies in your blood. This virus can slowly cause liver cancer or liver failure and the most frightening aspect is that men don’t notice any symptoms of the infection till it is too late for treatment.
Blood Sugar Test
Blood sugar test can help detect diabetes. Diabetes, if not controlled, may lead to many complications affecting multiple organs.
If a person suddenly loses weight or is thirsty more than usual, then he might be struggling with diabetes where his pancreas is unable to produce sufficient insulin or his body has becomes resistant to it.Dr Prashant Shetty
Lipid Profile
The Lipid Profile test indicates the health of your heart. It will guide you to control your fat levels so as to keep the heart in a healthy condition. A simple blood check helps in detecting if the cholesterol level in the blood is under control.
Cholesterol is a fatty substance which can clog up your arteries if it is low density lipoprotein (LDL) or “bad cholesterol”. High density cholesterol (HDL) or “good” cholesterol and triglycerides are also checked in the same blood sample.
This test is very important at even as young as early 30s, considering the rising instances of heart attacks at early ages. If the cholesterol levels are not what they should be, you will either be prescribed medicines or methods to reduce cholesterol.Dr Anurag Sharma
Thyroid Profile
Thyroid profile is essential, even for men.
This test will indicate the overall functioning of the thyroid gland and if you are diagnosed with a hyper or a hypo thyroid, then you will need to begin medication to manage it.Dr Prashant Shetty
Vitamin D Test
Vitamin D test is essential to keep bones healthy, even post 40 or 50 years of age.
Most Indians have low levels of Vitamin D due to sedentary lifestyles. Vitamin D is essential for calcium absorption in the body so any deficiency thereof can be corrected by medical or dietary intervention.Avni Kaul
How To Prepare For the Screenings?
Before scheduling these health tests and a doctor’s appointment, all men must take a few things into consideration. These criteria will help you figure out the specific medical tests you may need to get done.
- Take stock of the family’s medical history, especially if a close family member has been diagnosed with colorectal cancer, heart disease, osteoporosis, prostrate cancer or type 2 diabetes.
- Make a list of symptoms and questions regarding them before meeting the doctor.
- Discuss any future health concerns too so that the doctor may recommend a lifestyle change, if required.
Please remember that the tests conducted would depend on one’s personal information and health including age, lifestyle, habits, family history etc.
(Aarti K Singh is an independent writer with close to two decades' experience in various media. Having worked in radio, TV and print media, she is now indulging in her passion to rediscover the world, besides juggling a PhD and raising her son.)
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