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Four Health Issues to Discuss With Your Doctor
How to use your checkup to your best advantage.
You’re in okay-to-excellent health. You hate to complain — or otherwise take up too much of your busy doctor’s time. And while you would never let your children’s vaccination schedule lapse, it’s been years since you thought about your own. Put another way: How much does your M.D. really want to hear about your moles or grandmother’s memory loss?
If this sounds like you, you’re not alone. While women are excellent caretakers for their kids’, husband’s and even aging parents’ health concerns, they sometimes put their own on the backburner. That’s a mistake, says Dr. Stephen Bendheim. “Your doctor has to be somebody you can be open and honest with on any topic, no matter how personal. Before you leave the office on a visit, be sure to talk about everything you want to discuss,” he adds. Here are four health issues you should raise with your primary-care physician:
Family medical history. Your grandmother struggles with senility. Your mother has osteoporosis. And if you’re like most women, you just don’t want to think about if these issues will befall you too. To be clear, heredity isn’t destiny. But it does play a huge role in our health. That’s why Dr. Susan Wolver at the Virginia Commonwealth University Health System recommends sharing your family’s medical history with your physician. “You need to be a detective, so sit down with your doctor and talk about your family and disease,” she says. Make sure you cover both male and female relatives to develop a complete picture. This will allow your doctor to screen for various conditions — including cancers, heart disease, osteoporosis and diabetes — and to recommend preventive actions to help you stay healthy.
Cardiovascular health. American Heart Association statistics show that heart disease claims more women annually than all cancers combined. And more women than men die from strokes, which are all too common. The risks increase as women enter their forties and fifties. It’s a good idea to have a doctor routinely check your weight, blood pressure and cholesterol levels. For more information about heart disease and women, check out www.goredforwomen.org.
Skin cancer. Sure, you’re scrupulous about slathering on sunblock. But how careful were you when you were 17? As women approach middle age and beyond, skin may look darker or lighter in patches, and moles may change in both size and color — none of which may be cause for concern. But because only a dermatologist can make that determination, ask your doctor for a referral so you can have your skin examined. Note that the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) provides free screenings across the country. The AAD also offers an excellent guide, the ABCDs of Melanoma Detection, so you can perform your own self-exams between professional screenings.
Immunizations. Vaccinations are not just for children. Adults need to discuss this subject with their doctors and make sure that their shots are current, Wolver says. Rapidly advancing medical science now provides new protections against a wide range of diseases, including cervical cancer, hepatitis, and influenza. Updating vaccinations takes little time but can pay huge health dividends.
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gave me a boost to remember to think about these things when I go to my Dr. Thank you