Plea for men over 40 to get vital health check
Males over the age of 40 are being urged to take up the offer of the free NHS Health Check.
Coming forward when invited is important as the check can help to identify and diagnose conditions that could be quietly developing but not yet producing any noticeable signs or symptoms.
The ICB encouraged local men to get checked as part of the annual Men’s Health Week, which ran between Monday 9 and Sunday 15 June.
High blood pressure and high cholesterol, both of which are often described as silent killers due to neither having any distinct symptoms, are just two of the conditions that are looked for during the NHS Health Check.
Dr Barry Coakley, Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire Integrated Care Board, said: “This free check-up is a great way for men of a particular age, who may assume they are in good health, to get an accurate sense of the sort of shape they are really in.
“Many of the conditions that are more common in middle-aged men only produce symptoms once it’s too late, and these can often take the form of something quite radical, such as a heart attack or mini stroke.”
The health checks are commissioned by local authority public health teams.
Cllr Clare Cape, Wiltshire Council Cabinet Member for Public Health, said: “Men’s Health Week is an ideal opportunity to remind men to book their free health check with their GP.
“Prevention is always better than cure, and by speaking with a doctor, men can take proactive steps to stay in the best possible health.”
Invitations to the free NHS Health Check are sent automatically to both men and women as soon as they reach their 40th birthday, with follow-up invites then arriving in five-year increments.
Height, weight, blood pressure and cholesterol are recorded during the test, with the metrics then used to determine a person’s overall health, and whether any interventions, such as medication or lifestyle changes, are required.
Find out more about issues relating to men’s health, as well as further details on how to get tested for high blood pressure, at www.bswtogether.org.uk/yourhealth.