The yearly physical with your primary care physician in Orlando may seem like an annoying thing to do with your day. But are they actually necessary? Do you have to make the yearly trip to DNF Medical Centers to see your physician every year if you’re healthy? This blog post will discuss the necessity of the physical and how you can make it more useful in your everyday health and life.

The Danish Study

Researchers in Denmark studied the data of over 180,000 people who were either told to get an annual physical (which involved tests and advice about lifestyle factors such as diet and exercise) or were left alone to do as they wished in that area. The results were pretty surprising. It turned out that those people who got a routine checkup every year were just as likely to be alive after a 10-year period as those who skipped the annual physical.

What Your Primary Care Physician In Orlando Can Do For You

While the results of the Danish study are legitimate, there is still a lot that your primary physician can do to help you with your health. An internist’s sole job isn’t just to lecture you on your drinking, smoking, and diet. While all three of those things are important, an internist’s job is to foster a great relationship with you while getting to know your medical history. When you’re in an optimal state of health, you won’t need your primary physician. However, when you come down with the flu or have an ache for which you can’t identify the cause, you’ll be happy to have a doctor who knows the ins and outs of your medical history in your corner. When you’ve come down with an illness, the peace of mind that you’ll have when you have a physician that can take care of you is enormous.

Another thing that your primary care physician can do is recommend medications, supplements, and lifestyle changes that can prevent illness and injuries in the first place. No one wants to get sick. If you use your internist in the right way, you can slash the number of times that you come down with an illness that requires either hospitalization or a doctor’s attention.

Do I Really Need To See My Primary Care Physician in Orlando Every Year?

How many times should you see your primary care physician at DNF Medical Centers? That will depend a lot on your personal preferences and needs. If you have an illness like diabetes, you will have to see your internist more often than if you have a clean bill of health. But this doesn’t mean you should cut down your doctor’s visits to once every decade. To get more use out of your routine checkups, write down some questions before you get to the appointment. You might ask about some age-related milestones like mammograms or colonoscopies.

Seeing your primary care physician doesn’t have to become a chore. If you come prepared with questions and want to get proactive about your health, your next doctor’s visit can be a fruitful experience for both parties.