Why Blood Tests Are the Silent Heroes of Preventive Healthcare

The most easy way to get a complete snapshot of your overall health is a simple blood test. They are often used to diagnose illnesses and detect health issues in their early stages. These unsung heroes work behind the scenes to evaluate many health conditions. For instance, full blood count (FBC) or complete blood count (CBC) plays a vital role in the detection of an individual’s oxygen-carrying capacity and help evaluate conditions such as anaemia, certain cancers, infection, acute haemorrhagic states and allergies.

Why do you need to take a blood test?

You may be advised to go for a blood test for several reasons:

Routine health checks: If you are healthy and have no symptoms or underlying conditions, a blood test every 1-2 years is enough. These routine check-ups help your healthcare provider to evaluate cholesterol levels, glucose, and other key markers to ensure that your health is on track.

Symptoms or changes in health: Your doctor may recommend a blood test if you experience symptoms such as fatigue, unexplained weight loss, or persistent infections.

Risk Factors for certain conditions: Elevated levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) may indicate that an individual is at a higher risk of a heart disease. For those with conditions such as diabetes, obesity, or high blood pressure, regular blood tests are recommended.

Age-related screening: As we age, our bodies become more vulnerable to health issues. In such a situation, routine blood tests become vital — especially for men and women over 50 — to detect potential health problems early on, allowing for timely interventions. These tests help assess how well organs, such as your kidneys, liver, heart, or thyroid, are working.

What are the different types of blood tests?

Here are some commonly recommended blood tests:

Complete Blood Count (CBC): Often included in regular health screenings, it evaluates different components of blood including, red and white blood cells (RBC and WBC), haemoglobin, haematocrit, and platelets.

Basic metabolic panel (BMP): It offers insights into vital chemicals in the blood, including glucose, calcium and electrolytes like sodium, potassium, and bicarbonate.

Comprehensive metabolic panel (CMP): An extended version of the BMP, it includes liver function tests to provide a more complete picture of the body's metabolism and chemical balance.

Blood enzyme tests: Key enzyme tests include troponin and creatine kinase, which reveal information regarding muscle injury, including damage to the heart.

Cardiac risk and cholesterol tests: Often referred to as a lipid panel, these tests evaluate an individual’s risk of getting a heart disease. They measure the amounts of different types of fats (lipids) in the blood, including HDL (good) cholesterol, LDL (bad) cholesterol, and triglycerides.

Blood clotting tests (coagulation panel): These help evaluate how well your blood clots. Common tests include prothrombin time (PT), international normalized ratio (INR) and activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT).

Hormone tests: It measures certain hormones in the blood such as

• Sex hormones (estrogen, testosterone)
• Thyroid hormones (TSH, T3, T4)
• Cortisol (a stress hormone)

Infectious disease tests: These are done to detect infections such as Hepatitis B and C, syphilis, HIV, COVID-19 antibodies or antigens.

Nutritional and vitamin panels: It measures the levels of essential nutrients like Vitamin B12, Iron and ferritin and vitamin D.

Sources:

https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/blood-tests

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/blood-tests/