Right then, all you over 40's

[clumsymum]

Off to your Doctor's surgery for your NEW health checkup.

The Govt. has decided that all of us between 40 and 74 need to be weighed and measured, and given advice about our lifestyles.

Whilst our properly sick children wait and wait to see a GP or peadiatrician.

Well - I am in my 50s and haven't got TIME to go to the GP even if I am ill.............. (much less get an appointment)

Exactly 3littlefrogs.

The thing is there are those of us who look after our health, and don't need this initiative from govt, and those who don't who will either not attend, or totally ignore any advice given.

I do rather feel that it's another opportunity for the great and good (govt.) to nanny us all.

Is it really such a bad idea? It could pick up on something like "silent" AFib, which you might not even know you had, but which greatly increases your risk of a stroke (and which isn't necessarily connected with leading an unhealthy lifestyle, being overweight etc).

Professor Peter Weissberg states about the checks: "The big focus must be on reaching those at highest risk, who are often in our most deprived and hard to reach communities."

How about improving LIFE overall in these deprived communities so people can make different choices?

I'm going to quote the late, great, Theodore Roosevelt: 'This country will not be a good place for any of us to live in unless we make it a good place for all of us to live in.'

why do the government want to look after us over 40's? I would have thought they'd be keen for a few of us to die off, considering how many older people there are now, babyboomers & all that

I'm not great at visiting the doctor at the best of times. They keep begging me to go and have a flu vaccine thanks to my athsma. After years I finally got round to doing it this year. And I got sick as a dog just before Christmas

What are they intending to test for? I mean it's quite an open-ended question isn't it?

Health education, information, screening arc is all fantastic - but - those people who really need the help to access it are the people who need help and support in so many other areas of life, and are struggling to survive. I am thinking of those who are full time carers of elderly parents, or of children/relatives with diabilities for example - when are those people going to get help and support. It is hard enough getting any help when you have a chronic illness, where is the funding coming from to do all this weighing, measuring and advising?

Clumsymum makes a good point IMO.