7 medical tests every man needs

Admit it, guys: You don’t even like going to the doctor when there’s something wrong, let alone for preventative check-ups. But being proactive about your health—by getting recommended screenings for serious conditions and diseases—could mean you’ll spend less time at the doctor’s office down the road.

Depending on age, family history, and lifestyle factors, people need different tests at different times in their lives. Here’s a good overview for all men to keep in mind.

Diabetes

You may never need a screening for diabetes if you maintain a healthy weight and have no other risk factors for the disease (such as high cholesterol or high blood pressure). But for most men over 45—especially overweight men—a fasting plasma glucose test, or an A1C test, is a good idea.

The A1C test does not require fasting beforehand, but if your doctor wants to test you using fasting plasma glucose, you will be asked not to eat or drink anything but water for eight hours beforehand.

Sexually Transmitted Infections

Even if you’ve been in a monogamous relationship for years, it’s not a bad idea to get tested if you haven’t already done so. Many common sexually transmitted infections can go undiagnosed for years.

Body Mass Index

You don’t need to make an appointment to figure out your body mass index, a measure of body fat based on your height and weight. Regardless of whether you calculate this stat yourself or your physician does the math for you, it’s important to be aware of this number.

A BMI between 18.5 and 24.9 is considered normal weight.

Cholesterol

The American Heart Association recommends men have their cholesterol levels tested every four to six years once they turn 20.

But your doctor may want to screen you earlier (and more often) if you have heart disease risk factors such as diabetes, tobacco use, or high blood pressure.

Cholesterol is measured by a blood test, and your doctor may ask you not to eat for 9 to 12 hours beforehand.

Blood pressure

Like high cholesterol, high blood pressure is often a symptomless condition—but luckily, the test for hypertension is quick and painless.

Colonoscopy

Most men should be screened for colon cancer beginning at age 50, but those with a family history of the disease may benefit from earlier testing. Men and women alike tend to dread this test—in which a small camera is inserted into the anus and explores the large intestine for polyps or other signs of cancer—but it’s not as bad as it sounds.

The preparation for the test is actually the worst part. You’ll need to empty your bowels completely before the exam, which may involve not eating solid foods for one to three days, drinking lots of clear liquids, or taking laxatives. But here’s the bright side: If your doctor doesn’t find anything suspicious, you won’t need another colonoscopy for up to 10 years.

Prostate exam

Screening for prostate cancer is more controversial than for other cancers, and some studies have shown that these tests can be expensive and unnecessary, and may do more harm than good. But he suggests that all men over 50 at least talk with their doctors about the pros and cons of these tests—usually either a digital rectal exam (in which the doctor inserts a gloved finger, or digit, into the rectum to feel for lumps and abnormalities) and a PSA test, which measures a protein called prostate-specific antigen in the blood.

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