Do people take their children to the GP for regular checkups?

[Cailleachian]

My daughter tends to mild health anxiety and for ages she's been asking when she should get a check up at the docs and insisting that you go for a GP's checkup like you do for a dentist.

I've never taken my post-toddler children to checkups (she's my youngest) apart from my older children when they were about 7 with the health visitor and I think she had one about the same age (she's now 13) but through the school. I've been saying basically that checkups arent a thing, and that you go to the doc when you are actually ill, and the pharmacist recommends it.

Anyway she came down last night with an NHS website that said that everyone under 50 should have a check up at least once every 3 years, and annually for over 65s.

She's basically healthy and doesn't have any specific issues, she just wants a check up from a doc. Is this a thing?

@georgarina

No. But I know that in the US you have a check up every year before school

Exactly. Nice earner for the paediatricians.

My 9 year old has never had a Dr appointment since he stopped being a tot.

My son never saw a GP throughout the whole of his childhood and my daughter had a couple of appointments when tiny about her glue ear which we successfully manages with massage so that she was spared grommets.

Health checks when you aren’t ill should be something you pay privately for and not bother your GP who’s time should be spent looking at people with ailments.

However, if your daughter continues with this I would be taking her to see a GP to explain to her that health checks are completely unnecessary if she is not unwell and is eating and exceeding well and isn’t overweight, tired etc.