By Dr. Leticia Cox
Throughout a woman’s life, maintaining personal health and wellness requires a healthy lifestyle. You need to eat right, stay active, maintain an appropriate weight and avoid things, such as smoking, that put your health at risk.
There are so many risk factors you can’t control, so it’s critical to get the medical care and screenings you need to prevent disease and identify health problems early. Based on your age, health and risk factors, here are recommendations for healthcare and screenings.
Lifelong
It’s vital to know your numbers and risk factors. That’s why there are certain things your doctor will track at every visit, including your weight, blood pressure, heart rate, temperature, medications and supplements, and health history.
At your annual physical, based on your age, health and risk factors, the doctor will check cholesterol levels to determine heart disease risks, along with blood sugar levels to determine if diabetes could be a possibility. If the results are in healthy ranges and you have a low risk for these diseases, your physician may not require these tests every year — until you reach a certain age or something changes to increase risk factors.
Your annual physical also should include a Pap test, pelvic exam and breast exam. However, based on your risk factors and your physician’s recommendation, Pap tests may be done only once every three to five years.
Every year, get a flu vaccination. Every 10 years, get a tetanus shot. At least once a year, have a dental check-up.
Use the following guide to determine recommended screenings and health needs in each age bracket:
In your 20s & 30s
- Mammogram: can be done at any age if you have high risk, baseline at age 35-39
- Skin cancer check: every three years
- HPV vaccine: three doses by age 26
- Measles, mumps, rubella booster vaccine: one to two doses
- Eye exam: every two years, or annually if you have poor vision or risk factors
- Hearing test: every 10 years
In your 40s
- Mammogram: annually
- Skin cancer check: annually
- Colonoscopy: only if at high risk or you have a family history
- Eye exam: every two years, or annually if you have poor vision or risk factors
- Hearing test: every 10 years
In your 50s
- Mammogram: annually
- Skin cancer check: annually
- Either: a fecal occult blood test every year, a Sigmoidoscopy every five years or one colonoscopy
- Measles, mumps, rubella booster vaccine: one dose
- Shingles vaccine: one dose
- Hearing test: every three years
In your 60s — and beyond
- Mammogram: annually
- Skin cancer check: annually
- Either: a fecal occult blood test every year, a Sigmoidoscopy every five years or a colonoscopy every 10 years
- Pneumonia vaccine: annually after age 65
- Hearing test: every three years
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and it’s a great reminder of the importance of breast cancer screening. While mammograms are the best screening for breast cancer, beginning in your 20s, perform a monthly breast self-exam to check for lumps or other breast changes. In addition, know your risk factors for breast cancer and your family history.
When it comes to maintaining your health, the best strategy for treatment is prevention. If we can catch it before it happens, it’s always a better outcome.
Dr. Leticia Cox is an obstetrician/gynecologist with Lake Health Physician Group Women’s Health Specialists. For her profile, visit lakehealth.org.
