Seeing the doctor for an annual wellness checkup is a great way for men to improve their prospects for long-term health and quality of life. By doing a physical exam and looking over the results of blood work, your health care provider can make expert men’s health recommendations on things you can do to take good care of yourself.

Those recommendations may include lifestyle changes, prescription drugs and dietary supplements such as Flomentum, for example.

Yet, doctors aren’t miracle workers. After all, they might only see you for a few minutes each year, and they can only respond to what they observe during that brief time or to what you tell them about your health.

That’s why it’s so important to be open and honest with your doctor about your health and any concerns you may have. If you don’t tell them about the symptoms you’ve been experiencing, the pain you’ve been feeling or the changes you’ve noticed in your body, they won’t be able to help. And you’ll be the one who loses out.

A successful wellness visit requires two-way communication about many things, from your family health history and any medications you take to discussions about diet and exercise, cardiovascular risk factors, mental health and specific men’s health issues such as urinary function and control, erectile dysfunction and testicular cancer. Another huge point of conversation during your next wellness visit should be preventative care. After all, that’s why you make the appointment in the first place!

Preventative Men’s Health Discussions To Have With Your Doctor

In recognition of Testicular Cancer Month, we’ve compiled a list of three vital preventative men’s health questions you should always ask your doctor at each wellness checkup. Whatever your age and whatever is going on with your body, be sure to talk about these three things:

1) Am I due for any vaccines? Vaccines may have become a controversial topic since the outbreak of COVID-19 and the different perspectives on public mandates related to the pandemic, but immunizations remain one of the key ways to protect ourselves from disease. We often think of shots we may have received in childhood when we talk about vaccines. However, there are immunizations that can be helpful at every stage of life. Flu shots may come readily to mind, yet there are many others, too, including Hepatitis, MMR, and Tdap boosters. In some cases you should get certain shots at certain ages such as vaccines for HPV in your 20s, Shingles in your 50s and RSV in your 60s.

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2) What cancer screenings should I get? More than 1.6 million people in America get diagnosed with some form of cancer each year. And while cancer is the second-leading cause of death, behind heart disease, it is often treatable – especially when it’s discovered in its early stages. For example, nearly 10,000 men develop testicular cancer each year, yet the cure rate is greater than 95%. Your doctor may conduct a routine screening for testicular cancer as part of your annual wellness exam and encourage you to conduct self-checks periodically throughout the year. Be sure to ask your doctor about recommended screenings for prostate and colon cancer, too. Cancer screenings are a must, even if you have no apparent symptoms.

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3) Should I be taking any vitamins or supplements? From Vitamin A to Zinc, there are dozens of vitamins and minerals that your body needs for optimal health. Eating a diet that contains the right amounts of each nutrient is easier said than done. That’s why dietary supplements play such a huge role in our health care. Many supplements support our overall health and wellness while others aid specific concerns we may have such as quality sleep, positive mood and prostate health. For example, clinical-strength Flomentum is a prostate health supplement that puts the natural power of pure saw palmetto oil extract into a daily soft gel that supports healthy urinary flow and reduces urinary frequency in men as they age.

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