It is a good thing, in fact exceedingly beautiful, that you made it into the New Year, and given a chance to benefit from the opportunities that will open in 2022. If you are 45 years or older, you obviously have a family that is dependent on your being in good health at all times. That is why you must not let illness rob you of your health. The starting point is to schedule a visit to your doctor, and undergo a medical check-up. When you do visit the clinic, please make sure your doctor performs or recommends these simple tests that may save your health and prolong your life.

 

1. Colon cancer screening is recommended for everyone at age 50. Colon cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer deaths. When you turn 50, your chance of getting it goes up. Colonoscopy is the test most frequently recommended, though there are other options. Ask your doctor which screening test is best for you.

 

2. Stepping on the scales: This is the age when most people start gaining weight. Watch this weight gain carefully, and fight back with healthier eating and exercise. Being overweight puts you at high risk for getting a number of diseases and studies show that weight loss can improve your odds.

 

3. Blood pressure: Untreated high blood pressure is an equal opportunity killer: It kills your heart, your brain, your eyes, and your kidneys. Don›t let hypertension sneak up on you. Get your blood pressure checked. It›s simple, it›s cheap, and it›s quick.

 

4. Cholesterol profile. Do you have high cholesterol? Find out, at least once every four to six years (or more frequently if you have high cholesterol and you›re at risk for a heart attack). Controlling your cholesterol can add years to your life.

 

5. Blood sugar: Untreated diabetes can destroy your health, causing heart disease, kidney failure, and blindness. Don›t let diabetes take you down. Buy a blood sugar meter, to use at home to measure your fasting blood sugar regularly. The readings will give you early warning of diabetes or pre-diabetes. This will help take control of diabetes early.

 

6. This one is for women only: Do a pelvic exam and have a Pap smear. Combining a Pap test with a human papillomavirus (HPV) test can safely extend the interval between cervical cancer screenings from three years to five years in many women between the ages of 30 and 65. Women over age 65 can stop getting screened if they’ve had at least three consecutive negative Pap tests or at least two negative HPV tests within the previous 10 years, according to the guidelines. But women who have risk factors for cervical cancer such as smoking, a history of HPV, or a more advanced pre-cancer diagnosis should continue to be screened.

 

7. Women in their 50s, should have started routine mammograms to help detect any early signs of breast cancer. Your doctor can tell you how often you should repeat the test. Early detection of breast cancer can save your breast and your life.

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8. Men should undergo prostate cancer screening, especially when 50 years. Insist on your doctor sending you prostate cancer screening. But if you a man with a close relative who had early-onset prostate cancer, you should talk to your doctor at an earlier age.

 

9. Moles may not be common among Africans, yet you should check your skin for any unusual spots or moles. Check with your doctor if you notice anything new or unusual. Have them check your skin regularly if you have had skin cancer.

 

10. Protect your eyes. Vision-robbing diseases become more common as you age. Be sure to get your eyes examined regularly , once every one to three years until age 60, and then every year thereafter. Go more often if you have vision problems or risk factors for eye problems.

 

11. Get screened for hepatitis C. The United States Center for Disease Control (CDC) recommends that anyone over the age of 18 should get tested for hepatitis C. If you haven’t been screened, you should consider having the test.

 

12. Depression screening: Depression is a common cause of disability in adults, although it’s often overlooked. It can show up with chronic illness and aging. It’s not a normal part of aging, and you can get treatment. If you›re feeling sad, hopeless, or not interested in things you used to enjoy, talk with your doctor. They can see if you›re depressed by having you fill out a questionnaire or by asking you a few simple questions.

 

FINALLY, remember that there is a lot you can do on your own to stay healthy as you age: don’t smoke, eat a healthy diet, exercise regularly, keep your weight healthy and practice safe sex.

 

• Adapted from webmd.com