Men's Health Screenings
This information was reviewed and approved by Andrew M. Freeman, MD, FACC, FACP (6/5/2020).
Manage your health and identify conditions early at more treatable stages by having regular health screenings and checkups. General recommended screenings from the National Institutes of Health are shown below. Your physician may suggest other screenings, tests and immunizations to meet your individual health needs.
Keys to Health Success
The best way to protect and maintain your health is with lifestyle:
- A diet rich in plants, relatively low in fat and with limited red meat
- 30 minutes a day of moderate exercise
- Stress reduction
Blood Pressure: Check at least every two years or more often if you have diabetes, heart disease or other conditions, or at the advice of your physician. Learn more about high blood pressure or hypertension. If you are overweight or have other risk factors, checking blood pressure more often may be recommended. Consider checking it every time you go to the grocery store or pharmacy.
Cholesterol: Have this screening every five years after age 35 or more often if you have other health conditions. Learn more about how cholesterol can affect health. At age 20, most health care providers will do a baseline screening.
Diabetes: Screen for this condition every three years. If you are overweight, or have high blood pressure or other risk factors, your doctor may screen you more often.
Colon Cancer: Anyone under age 50 (as early as 40, and sometimes 35) with a strong family history of colon cancer or polyps should be screened. If you are aged 50 to 75, have a stool occult blood test annually, a flexible sigmoidoscopy every five years and a colonoscopy every 10 years or more often with ulcerative colitis, family history of colorectal cancer or a history of colorectal tumors. What you need to know about colon cancer screening.
Immunizations: Get a flu shot annually and other immunizations as recommended by your physician. Learn more about common immunizations.
Lung Cancer: Smokers with a 30 pack-year smoking history and who currently smoke or who have quit within the past 15 years need an annual lung cancer low-dose CT scan. More about the lung cancer screening.
Osteoporosis: If you are aged 50 to 70 with a history of long-term steroid use, low body weight, smoking, heavy alcohol use, bone fracture after age 50 or family history, you should discuss screening with your doctor. Learn more about why this screening is important for men. Excessive protein intake can often derail calcium balance in the body, so limit high protein splurges.
Physical Exam: Generally this is done once a year and may include checking height, weight, body mass index, blood pressure, testicles, prostate, lifestyle questions and health problems.
Prostate Cancer: African American men and those with a family history of prostate cancer should discuss screening at age 45. If you are aged 50 and older, you should discuss the need for this screening with your doctor.
Body Mass Index: Normal is 18-25 kg/m2, and should be checked at every doctor’s visit. Maintaining a healthy weight reduces your risk for many chronic and acute conditions. Learn more about maintaining a healthy weight.
Heart Rate: Irregular heart rate might indicate a condition known as atrial fibrillation. If you use a digital watch or other device which measures heart rate or ECG, or your doctor hears an irregular rate, an EKG is needed to confirm the finding and treatment can be initiated from there. Learn more about when your heart rhythm is off.
Other Screenings
Miners: Exposure to dusts, fumes, smoke, radiation, noise and chemicals place miners at increased risk for several ailments including: black lung, silicosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), noise-induced hearing loss, bronchitis, lung cancer, tuberculosis and emphysema. Take advantage of our free health screenings for miners at the Miners Clinic.
Sleep Issues: If you are excessively sleepy or fatigued during the day, have trouble falling or staying asleep, or experience any of these symptoms, contact your physician for a sleep evaluation.
Content reviewed by Andrew Freeman, MD, FACC, FACP (May 2016).