Hepatitis C Testing: Do You Need It?

Hepatitis C testing detects this serious infection of the liver, which causes the liver to swell. Hepatitis C is a silent killer, as it rarely presents itself with symptoms. Unlike its counterparts, Hepatitis A and Hepatitis B, there is no vaccine for the Hepatitis C Virus. Hepatitis C is a highly infectious virus that causes extreme damage to the liver and over time can cause liver cancer, liver failure, cirrhosis of the liver and even death.

People with Hepatitis C can easily spread the disease to others, even without symptoms. If you think that there is a remote possibility that you have been exposed to the disease, the Center for Disease Control recommends that you get a Hepatitis C test right away.

Hepatitis C: How to Prevent It

As mentioned earlier, Hepatitis C can not be prevented through vaccination. The best way to prevent exposure to the virus is to avoid certain practices. You can get Hepatitis C by the following ways: sharing drug needles, getting pricked with a needle that has infected blood on it, having sex with an infected person, getting a tattoo or body piercing with unsterilized tools, and being born to an infected mother. Also, if you have had a transfusion before 1992 there is a possibility you have received infected blood. Before 1992, there were no tests for the Hepatitis C virus.

Hepatitis C: How to Test for It

Hepatitis C can be detected through a very simple blood test. Health Check USA offers a Hepatitis test that will detect Hepatitis A, B and C. To ensure accuracy of the panel, HealthCheckUSA.com recommends a ten-hour fast prior to having your blood drawn. However, water and black coffee are permitted during this time. If you have any questions regarding this lab test, please contact one of our representatives.

Hepatitis C: How to Treat It

Once you have received your test results back and have discovered you have the Hepatitis C Virus, notify your doctor immediately. Your doctor may perform a liver biopsy to see the extent of any liver damage that has already occurred. There are two drugs that doctors can treat you with, peginterferon and ribavirin. They are given through shots and have strong side effects. If you have had the virus for several years, you may require surgery or even a liver transplant.

Order a Hepatitis Test Now

Just like any other kind of STD testing, hepatitis testing is definitely a case of “better safe than sorry.” If you suspect you might be at risk for hepatitis, or just want to make sure you’re clean, order a Hepatitis test without delay.

Wellness Proposal for Good Health

Wellness Proposals are plans put together by corporate wellness providers, such as EmployeeWellnessUSA, that enable a company to determine whether an employee wellness program would work for them. Unfortunately, corporate health trends are going the way increasing care costs and skyrocketing pharmaceutical expenditures. Corporate wellness programs can help reverse these trends.

Wellness Proposal Building Block for Wellness Program

Once a corporation approves a proposal, they begin instituting a wellness program based on their initial proposal that involves health risk assessments, health testing, group exercise, and employee incentives to get healthy.

Wellness programs can be compromised of, but not limited to; dietary advice, weight loss and healthy cooking classes, yoga classes, massage therapists at the workplace, and stress management sessions, they look to an initial proposal to see the directions they need to take. Besides Wellness Proposals, EmployeeHealthUSA.com provides on-site staffing, on-site screening and online scheduling of the health screens.

EmployeeWellnessUSA offers free wellness proposals to help employers help their employees take charge of their health. Once they have discovered how to take charge, HealthCheckUSA can help them manage their health through the offering of low cost, direct to consumer lab tests.

How to Obtain a Free Wellness Proposal

You can get a wellness proposal by contacting an Employee Wellness USA corporate wellness representative. They will ask you all sorts of questions regarding your corporate goals, employee goals, budgets, etc, to assist them in putting together your personalized wellness proposal.

In the meantime, if you have any questions or concerns about your health, or if you just want to get a headstart on your corporate wellness program; contact a representative at HealthCheckUSA and get started right away. The representatives are there to answer any lab test questions that you might have now and in the future.

Interpreting lab test results needn’t be a chore or a mystery

Interpreting the lab test results that you get back from HealthCheckUSA is remarkably easy.

Your lab test results are sent to you the first business day after your lab test via first-class mail. The lab test results arrive in a confidential, printed document with the laboratory’s findings laid out in a clear, easy-to-read fashion.

Interpreting lab tests: use our Test Results Info guide

Of course, since these are the same medically accepted lab tests that physicians use, interpreting some of the lab test terms and abbreviations can be challenging without a guide.

That’s why our Test Results Info page was created. Interpreting your lab test is simple with the Test Results Info page. On that page, you can find definitions for common lab test result abbreviations like “WBC” (white blood cell count) and “LDL” (low density lipoprotein, or “bad cholesterol”).

Many lab test results are expressed in reference ranges. These ranges indicate the low and high for what’s considered to be “normal” for that lab test criterion.

Interpreting lab tests: what if your lab test comes back abnormal?

If your lab test result for an item is not within the normal range, or has other red flags, don’t panic! “Normal” lab test results are not set in stone, and many factors can contribute to an out-of-range lab test result, from stress to a dietary anomaly to a benign congenital condition. If you’re out of the reference range when you go to interpret your lab test, you should consider re-taking the test or asking a physician for a professional medical interpretation. Since our lab tests are the same ones doctors order, your family doctor can interpret your HealthCheckUSA lab test without difficulty.

Order a Physician Interpretation with your lab test

You should also look into the “Physician Interpretation” option, especially if you choose to re-take the test. For a minimal charge, you can have a HealthCheckUSA partner doctor interpret your lab test. Secure and confidential, a Physician Interpretation gets a board-certified physician to read your lab test and examine it in special detail. You can then access your interpretation by calling a toll-free number three days after your lab test.

Interpreting your lab test from HealthCheckUSA isn’t a chore. It’s easy with the tools at the HealthCheckUSA website and the Physician Interpretation test option. Also, if you have any lab test questions, just contact HealthCheckUSA. We’re happy to answer your questions fully and swiftly.

Nutrition Panels are Great Preventative Medicine

A nutrition panel could be your best preventative medicine. A nutrition panel consists of a simple blood test that examines the way your body processes food. Even though adhering to a good diet and exercise regimen is the best way to stay healthy, each body’s chemistry is unique and breaks down nutrients in different ways. Most diseases are caused by a lack of proper nutrition or an inefficient breakdown of the nutrition that the body receives. At under $100, a nutrition panel is an affordable, comprehensive way to prevent potential health problems.

Fast Before a Nutrition Panel

Fasting for 10 hours prior to the nutrition panel is recommended for the best lab test results, though drinking water or black coffee doesn’t adversely affect the panel’s results. Therefore, it is usually best to schedule the panel in the morning.

Test your diet with a nutrition panel

Nutrition panels focus on three specific areas: CHEM-26, vitamin B12 with folic acid, and total iron binding capacity (TIBC).

The CHEM-26 portion analyzes the body’s total cholesterol (HDL & HDL), triglycerides, glucose, calcium, uric acid, electrolyte, and iron, as well as kidney, heart and liver functions. Glucose levels indicate how the body processes sugar, so it’s good to keep tabs on them if your family has a history of diabetes. Too much or too little iron can be a sign of various health problems.

The vitamin B12 and folic acid portion of the panel can provide information on the body’s metabolic functions. The body uses B vitamins to access and mobilize the energy stored in carbohydrates, fat, and protein. Without B vitamins, the risk of organ damage is heightened. Folic acid is in the B vitamin family and works hand-in-hand with B12 to unlock the nutritional value of the foods you eat. Folic acid also helps to synthesize DNA in the production of new cells.

The total iron binding capacity or TIBC portion checks the blood’s ability to transport iron throughout the body. If your iron levels are low, eating more iron-rich foods like dark green vegetables is recommended.

All three sections of the nutrition panel provide information on which functions of the body are efficient and which need more attention.

What if a nutrition panel comes back with abnormal results?

If a nutrition panel produces abnormal results, share them with your doctor. He or she may recommend different health tests, a change in diet or exercise regimen, or another nutrition panel to double-check the results.

Roots of Colon Cancer

Colon cancer has roots in some of the first to make America their new home. Research done by the University of Utah has traced a gene mutation for colon cancer all the way back to some of the very first settlers to the New World.

Mr. and Mrs. George Frye are genetically responsible for a significant number of colon cancer cases today. Those with the mutation almost a 70% chance of getting colon cancer, compared with 4% of those who do not carry the gene.

Symptoms of Colon Cancer

Colon cancer, also known as colorectal cancer, is the third leading cause of cancer death in the United States. Colon cancer starts as benign polyps, abnormal growths in the large intestine. These polyps later become cancerous. Symptoms include diarrhea, abdominal pain and unknown weight loss.

Screen for Colon Cancer

Don’t know if the Fryes are your distant relatives? Good news. Colon cancer can be treated if diagnosed early. HealthCheckUSA offers a fecal occult blood test (FOBT) as a colon cancer screening. The test screens for gastrointestinal bleeding and can help diagnose colon cancer in its early stages.

Chlamydia Screenings Can Detect the Silent STD

Chlamydia, popularly known as “the clap,” is the most common sexually transmitted disease, but don’t expect to hear about it in the news. While many remain silent on the taboo topic, the infection quietly affects around 2.8 million people per year. 75% of infected women and half of infected men don’t even know they have the disease - because they have no symptoms. Tests such as this Chlamydia Screening are the only way to know for sure.

Risks of Untreated Chlamydia

A person infected with Chlamydia is five times more likely to become infected with HIV, and if left untreated, can lead to other illnesses such as Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID) and chronic pelvic pain.

Get Tested For Chlamydia

The Center for Disease Control recommends testing annually for Chlamydia, especially for women under 25. Health Check USA offers a Chlamydia antibody screening for the bacteria Chlamydia trachomatis, which can be transmitted through sexual contact, as well as hands and clothing.

Celiac disease is one of the most common diseases you’ve never heard of. Its symptoms are as common as fatigue, joint pain or muscle cramps, but also include serious illnesses such as anemia and osteoporosis. With such vague symptoms, the disease is often misdiagnosed by doctors or temporarily treated with over-the-counter medications. Celiac disase can easily be diagnosed by a test such as the Celiac Disease DNA Test. While there is no cure, a change in diet can get rid of many symptoms.

Celiac disease is caused by gluten, a food product made of wheat, rye or barley found in many foods and medicines today. The immune system responds to gluten by damaging the lining of the small intestine, which normally aids in absorbing nutrients from our food. Celiac disease causes malnutrition, and can lead to cancer.

According to the Associated Press, over two million people in the U.S. suffer from celiac disease, and for Linda Fedewa, owner of A Piece O’ Cake Bakery, the disease was working her to death.

Because all of her baked goods were made with flour, Fedewa constantly ate food with gluten and had no idea why she was so sick. She was losing weight rapidly, and her doctor began checking for symptoms of an eating disorder after her weight dropped to 85 pounds. After being tested, Fedewa was told to stay away from all things gluten, including the extravagant cakes she baked for her customers. After changing her diet, she began looking for an gluten-free alternative for her bakery. Today, Fedewa’s gluten-free goods comprise a quarter of her business, and offer treats for those suffering from both celiac disease and a sweet tooth. (AP)

While celiac disease is a genetic illness, it can also be triggered by stress, infection or childbirth. As with any illness, early detection through health tests is the key to fighting celiac disease. HealthCheckUSA offers free genetic counseling with their Celiac Disease DNA Test.

Happy New Year! We sincerely wish a happy 2008 to you and your family. We also wish you a very Healthy 2008! Make a resolution to take better care of yourself this year and start the year off right with a men’s health screening or our women’s health screening. Also, make sure you are getting proper nutrition this year by having a nutrition analysis. Be healthy in 2008 and you are well on the way to a Happy New Year!

AIDS testing is a cut-and-dried reality for most of us lucky enough to be reading blogs on the Internet. We know what AIDS testing is, and we know when to get tested for AIDS. We know what it does, and we have a pretty good concept of the dangers and symptoms of AIDS.

We’re really, really fortunate.

Babalwa Tembani is a 21-year-old woman who lives in Cape Town, South Africa. At the age of 14, she was raped by her HIV-positive uncle because he believed the myth that sex with a virgin would cure him of the virus. Now Babalwa is infected and must take anti-AIDS drugs regularly to stay alive.

If her uncle had known a little more about AIDS, Babalwa would probably be looking at a bright future, full of promise. Instead, her health will always be a black cloud hovering over her ominously.

A little knowledge goes a long way. HealthCheckUSA provides quality AIDS testing at affordable prices, but if a person doesn’t know that they need to be tested, they’ll never find out about their health, and they may end up curtailing their lives and those of the people they love. And that’s not the only ignorance that might prevent them from pursuing AIDS testing.

If a person believes some of the many myths about AIDS, they may fail to seek out the medical help that can save their lives. These myths are widespread; they’re not South African. For example:

• AIDS is nearly always fatal so testing is futile (in reality, quick diagnosis can save lives),
• AIDS can always be cured by modern medications, so there’s no reason to worry or rush to be tested (it can’t - success rates are about 80%),
• AIDS was developed by the government to kill minorities (a survey of Texan Latinos and blacks found that some 30% of that population believes this),
• AIDS doesn’t exist, and is a conspiracy to marginalize the gay community (untrue).

I’d be the last person to trumpet the glories of public education in the Western world. The First World can alarmingly rank last at things. (In fact, South Africa is considered a first-world country by many.) But I am grateful to the teachers, public health officials and medical professionals - and yes, even the news media - who have successfully educated me and my loved ones about AIDS testing. Although there’s still a daunting amount of myth-busting to be done, I’m privileged to have benefited from their guidance.

If only Babalwa Tembani were so lucky.