How to live to be a hundred years old
Advice from American doctors
Vladimir Vinogradov (Geller), Echo of MoscowAn American man, writes the USA Today newspaper with irony, is more likely to take care of the "health" of his car than his own.
Most doctors will agree with this point of view. "Many representatives of the stronger sex simply do not pay attention to their health," says Professor Jeff Kane, president of the American Academy of Family Physician, "men have not been undergoing medical examinations for ten years or more. A third do not have a doctor, and another third of respondents admit in surveys that they visit a doctor only when the symptoms of the disease cannot be ignored."
Unlike American women, most men do not make up a mandatory age-related preventive schedule for visiting doctors. And it is simply necessary to do this in order to protect yourself from diseases or to identify them at an early stage and begin treatment.
American medicine offers men the following schedule to support their health.
18 years oldAt this age, three mandatory vaccinations should be done:
- Vaccination against meningitis
- Vaccination that prevents infection with the human papillomavirus (HPV), which can cause cancer and the appearance of genital warts. Vaccination has a greater effect if it was carried out before a person entered into sexual intercourse.
- Vaccination against tetanus, diphtheria and whooping cough (tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis (Tdap).
Doctors recommend getting a tetanus vaccination once every 10 years. The recent sharp increase in cases of whooping cough, which is characterized by a dry cough, forced experts from the federal medical service – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to declare to vaccinate against whooping cough to all Americans without exception.
Doctors recommend that young people begin to control their blood pressure also from the age of 18. The increase in pressure may occur imperceptibly. The leadership of the American Heart Association considers it necessary to check the pressure every two years.
20-30According to the latest recommendations, men should start checking their cholesterol levels no later than 20 years old and do tests at least once every five years.
In the presence of high cholesterol, tests should be carried out more often and on a regular basis.
40 years oldIf a man is 40 years old, he, doctors believe, must necessarily do two tests: for hepatitis C and diabetes.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) experts recommend that all representatives of the baby boomer generation born between 1945 and 1965 must be tested for hepatitis C. This disease is dangerous because it leads to cirrhosis of the liver. In addition, 5% of patients with cirrhosis may develop primary liver cancer.
The probability of developing liver cancer is higher with the simultaneous course of two infections – hepatitis B and C. Prolonged alcohol consumption is also associated with a higher risk of liver cancer.
It is important to note that acute hepatitis C is practically not diagnosed and in most cases passes into the chronic stage. Many people who already have the hepatitis C virus in their body do not even suspect that they have become infected and their health is at risk.
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According to the recommendations of cardiologists and endocrinologists, men should start checking their blood sugar starting at the age of 45. The tests will show whether the person is in a prediabetic state or has already contracted diabetes. If everything is in order, the test should be repeated after three years.
As medical practice shows, many do not even suspect that they are one step away from developing diabetes. "The tests will help them make changes to their diet, lifestyle, which will allow them to avoid the disease or keep it under control," says Professor Raul Ceballos.
50 years oldAmerican doctors from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommend that men be tested for colon cancer starting from the age of 50.
People at risk (heredity) should undergo appropriate tests at an earlier age.
For men who have agreed to undergo a colonoscopy, and who have not been found to have any pathologies, a second check can be carried out after 10 years. This is the opinion of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, although many proctologists believe that a repeat colonoscopy should be done every three years. In the case of detection and removal of polyps – in a year.
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How often should the prostate gland be checked for prostate cancer? There is no consensus among experts on this score. Members of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force do not see the need for regular prostate-specific antigen (PSA) tests for early detection of prostate cancer. Why did they come to such conclusions?
The fact is that the results of five studies showed that the use of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) tests for early detection of prostate cancer did not lead to a reduction in mortality. On the contrary, the operations performed on the basis of the test only complicated the life of patients due to complications: chronic pain, impotence and urinary incontinence, which significantly reduces the quality of life of patients.
However, other medical groups, in particular the American Cancer Association, did not agree with this approach, recommending that men necessarily consult with their doctor on whether to do a test for prostate-specific antigen (PSA) or refuse it.
60-70 years oldExperts of the American Heart Association consider it necessary for men over 60 to check blood vessels – ankle-brachial index test annually or every two years.
With the help of the ankle-brachial index test (ankle-brachial index), the arterial pressure in the arteries of the lower extremities is changed to assess the state of blood circulation, which makes it possible to identify diseases of the arteries in which blood clots can form.
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Men, especially smokers, over the age of 60 should necessarily check the condition of the abdominal aorta for the detection of an abdominal aortic aneurysm. Those who have ever smoked, but then gave up this bad habit, should also take a test. Ultrasound is used for this.
The danger of an abdominal aortic aneurysm is that in the event of its "explosion" a person can die in a matter of seconds.
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru05.10.2012