A Guide to Predicting Your Medical Future
Nonfasting total blood cholesterol: High cholesterol is one of three important risk factors for coronary artery disease that you can do something about. (The other two are smoking and high blood pressure.) A complete lipid panel, which tests HDL, LDL and triglycerides, should start at 35 for men and 45 for women and be repeated every five years, according to federal health guidelines. People of both genders with risk factors for heart disease should start at 20.
Fasting blood-glucose test: This test, which determines how much sugar is in the blood, is often used as the first clinical indicator of diabetes. Although the USPSTF doesn't recommend that everyone get checked, the test can be used as a preventive measure in people over 40, or in younger people with heart conditions, obesity or family members with diabetes. The American Diabetes Association recommends a test every three years. Lausier says that in the past, a glucose level over 120 was a diagnosis of diabetes and anything below was considered normal; now, a result between 100 and 120 is categorized as "pre-diabetes." A third of pre-diabetics advance to the full-fledged disease; it's possible to reverse the trend if it's caught in time.
Eye exam for vision: Eyesight starts to deteriorate around this age, so get tested if you think it's declining, or at least twice between 30 and 39, according to Lausier. People who need glasses, contacts or other forms of vision correction should get retested every two to four years, says King.
Eye exam for glaucoma: This condition starts to appear from age 45. It develops quickly, but can be managed medically and surgically. People at high risk are nearsighted, have diabetes, are African-American or have a family history. If you're in one of these groups, get tested during your eye exam.
50 to 64 Years Old
Doctors start screening for several diseases in healthy people after 50 without risk factors. Even if you feel fine, you should add new tests to your regimen, especially for cancer.
WOMEN
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Member Comments
Posted By: Bullsfan @ 01/30/2008 10:09:19 AM
Comment: Oh, and let's put eating disorders vs obesity into perspective. Roughly 7 million people have eating disorders in the US. In contrast, 25% of AMericans are obese. That's 75 MILLION people. Which do YOU think is the bigger heath risk.?
Posted By: njdocisin @ 01/27/2008 3:59:47 AM
Comment: The article also left out skin cancer screenings. People 20-40 should have a clinical skin exam at least every 3 years, people 40+ should have one annually, and all people over the age of 20 should be doing montly self-exams. Kind of a big oversight IMO.
Posted By: Ivhie @ 01/21/2008 7:52:51 PM
Comment: Coronary heart/artery disease is not ONLY a genetic disease. It is a well-known fact that many things can contribute to the health of your blood vessels and heart. Coronary artery disease comes about when plaque forms and builds on the arteries. Although people with genetic predisposition can often build the plaque more quickly, genes are not the only factor. Diet, exercise, and a whole host of other factors also play a role. I'm not sure why hamidbak is so sure that CAD and gum disease are not related, but researchers (yes many researchers, and yes they did medical research studies) have found that people with periodontal disease are almost two times as likely to suffer from coronary artery disease as those without periodontal disease. Whether it is a direct cause-and-effect is not certain, but I think that results like that would make me want to brush my teeth and get my cavities taken care of. How about you?