Your health is your number one asset. Therefore, staying healthy and keeping fit should be top of your to-do list. While good health is essential, it is not constant. Different factors affect your health, including environmental conditions, lifestyle, and age.
While you might have some control over factors such as your lifestyle, you can’t control your age. Aging is a natural process that occurs in everything. Unfortunately, the process of aging also comes with various medical conditions.
When you’re young, your cells multiply fast so that you can grow. During this period, you become energetic. However, as you age, cell multiplication drops. This makes you prone to illnesses. Also, in case of injury, your body takes longer to heal because of the reduced cell production.
Since some illnesses are not apparent during their onset, screening for them is the only way for early detection. Screening for various diseases is crucial for all ages. But the older you get, the higher the importance to screen for age-related diseases.
Below we describe 3 essential health screenings for adults above 40 years. As always, make sure that you seek health screening services from qualified personnel for safety reasons.
1. Type II Diabetes
Regular screening for diabetes is crucial once you are above 40 years. Type II diabetes comes when your blood glucose is high. Suppose you experience symptoms such as excessive thirst, fatigue, and frequent urination; you should go for type II screening as soon as possible.
But you don’t have to wait for the symptoms to show to visit the doctor. Getting screened before the symptoms show provides an opportunity to catch the illness in its early stages, making it easy to manage.
2. Blood Pressure
Checking your blood pressure regularly when you’re above 40 years is essential. There is a tendency for blood pressure to increase as you age. High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is a serious cause for concern because it undermines your safety.
Symptoms such as nose bleeding, confusion, headaches, and irregular heartbeat could mean you have high blood pressure. But the only way to confirm is by going for a health screening. Again, you should not wait to experience any of the symptoms before getting screened. Instead, make it habitual to visit the doctor every two years if your blood pressure is normal.
3. Colon Cancer Screening
Colon cancer screening is essential for all adults, especially after 40 years. Your doctor should screen for colorectal cancer and colorectal polyps. Screening for cancer every 3-5 years helps in its early detection and treatment.
The Bottom Line
Aging is a complicated process that affects the quality of your health. When you get to 40 years and above, you must take action to catch and stop illnesses before they overwhelm you. Regular screening is the surest way of catching illnesses such as hypertension, colon cancer, and diabetes early.
Trust your doctors to be compassionate and supportive if they detect an illness during screening. Therefore, you should not be afraid.