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Recommended check is every one to two years. Your provider will wrap a rubber cuff
around your upper arm and inflate it. He or she will slowly release the air from
the cuff, listening to the pulse beats in your arm with a stethoscope to measure
when your heart contracts and when it relaxes. Blood pressure screening service
is free to the community and no reservations are necessary. The clinic is held on
the first Wednesday of each month. For more information, call (310)
540-9631.
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Recommended check is every year, as well as a monthly self-check of your own breasts.
Your provider will look at your breasts for dimples, inverted nipples or lumps. Then,
he or she will manually examine your breasts using a circular motion, checking for
lumps. [breast self-exam]
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Since blood travels throughout the body, blood samples can offer a wide range of
information about your health. Usually blood is drawn from your arm with a needle
connected to a tube. Less often, a finger prick test will collect drops of blood.
Common blood tests are used to measure the levels of calcium, cholesterol,
triglycerides (a form of fat), blood sugar, thyroid hormones, or other chemicals
in your body. A test of your complete blood count (CBC) can indicate if you have
anemia, lack iron, have lost too much blood or have an infection or a serious
illness like leukemia. Some diseases, like hepatitis, syphilis and AIDS, can also
be detected through a blood test.
You should have your cholesterol checked every five years after age 18. How
frequently you need your blood sugar levels checked depends on your family history
and risk factors for diabetes. You should get an HIV test if you have had a blood
transfusion between 1978 and 1985, if you’ve injected illegal drugs, or have
had multiple sex partners.
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