It's only the first week of February so there’s still plenty of time to set yourself up for a healthy 2024.
“Start off by thinking about things that we can do, with medical evidence, to support that they will make us healthier,” said Dr. Tracy Muday, Executive Medical Director for Regence BlueCrossBlueShield.
Muday said there are a few dozen tried and true screenings, labs, vaccines and other things to do now while you’re healthy that can keep you from getting sick later.
“A good place to start is by scheduling an annual wellness visit,” said Muday.
And there’s no cost for these critical preventive screenings on most healthcare plans.
“Lots of diseases don't have symptoms early on - as an example, high blood pressure, most people don't know that they have it. That's why when you go in for your wellness visit your doctor will take your blood pressure to see if it's in the right range. If it's consistently elevated, we have effective treatments to treat that,” said Muday.
And prevent it from getting worse or causing other resulting issues like heart attack of stroke.
Preventive screenings are also critical when it comes to cancer.
For instance, cervical cancer used to be the number one cancer killer of women. It’s still number four in the world. But here in the U.S., major strides have been made when it comes to early detection, saving countless lives.
“It's virtually, entirely preventable at this point,” said Muday.
And what about our mental health?
“We're talking about all kinds of different things when it comes to mental health as well. You may find that when you go to the doctor you get some screening questions.”
She said those questions maybe about your mood, sleep, how much alcohol you consume or any drug use, with treatment options available to help there as well.
“Now is the time.”
Especially for those seasonal immunizations and that flu shot.
“Vaccinations are the powerhouse of our preventive care wheelhouse,” said Muday.
