You're in your 40s and beyond! Your prime. What can you do to live a healthier life? Be healthier with one — or all — of the steps below! Get the conversation started at your next well-woman visit with this list.
From your 40s on:
Every day, you should try to:
- Eat healthy: Michael Pollan's 7 rules for healthy food
- Get at least 30 minutes of physical activity
- Practice meditation
- Learn more about mindfullness
- Get at least 7 to 9 hours of sleep
- Reach and maintain a healthy weight: What is my BMI
- Get help to quit or not start smoking: Mindfullness to reduce urge to smoke
- Limit alcohol use to 1 drink or less
- Not use illegal drugs or misuse prescription drugs
- Wear a helmet when riding a bike and wear protective gear for sports
- Wear a seat belt in cars and not text and drive
- Take 400 to 800 mcg of folic acid (for premenopausal women)
Talk to your doctor at least once a year about:
- In my 40s: Whether I plan to get pregnant or the right birth control for me (for premenopausal women)
- Start learning about menopause
- Perimenopause symptoms
- My weight, diet, and physical activity level
- Whether I use tobacco, alcohol, or drugs
- Any violence in my life: Screen for domestic/initimate partner violence
- Depression and any other mental health concerns: Screen for depression
- My family health history, especially my risk of cancer, heart disease, and diabetes
- Colorectal cancer screening (usually after 50, but sometimes after 45 years of age)
I will ask my doctor whether I am at higher risk of or need tests, medicines, or vaccines this year for:
- Blood pressure
- Breast cancer prevention medicines
- Cholesterol
- Colorectal cancer
- Diabetes
- Flu vaccine
- COVID-19 vaccine
- Hepatitis A, B, and C
- HIV
- Mammogram
- Measles, mumps, and rubella
- Meningitis
- Pap and HPV
- Sexually transmitted infections
- Tetanus, diphtheria, and whooping cough
- Tuberculosis
- Urinary incontinence: Screen for incontinence
From your 50s on add:
- Menopause symptoms: The online menopause test
- Screening for colorectal cancer
- Discuss: Low-dose aspirin
- Osteoporosis: The USPSTF recommends screening for osteoporosis with bone measurement testing to prevent osteoporotic fractures in postmenopausal women younger than 65 years who are at increased risk of osteoporosis, as determined by a formal clinical risk assessment tool: FRAX tool
- Shingles vaccination
From your 60s on add:
- Osteoporosis screen: The USPSTF recommends screening for osteoporosis with bone measurement testing to prevent osteoporotic fractures in women 65 years and older.
- Colorectal cancer screening
- Pneumonia vaccine