There is no need to go to a hospital if you want to maintain your health. With busy lives, people often postpone their routine visits to the doctor until they have significant health issues. Fortunately, you can do several health assessments at home quickly, easily, and without the need for expensive health tools. These evaluations are a way for you to check the health of your body, catch warning signs early, and seek help when needed.
At HomeDoc, we believe prevention is better than cure. Incorporating a few self-checks into your daily or weekly routine, will allow you to stay on top of your health and make better health decisions for your personal lifestyle. Let’s look at some easy health checkups at home you can do without stepping out from your home.
1. Heart Rate & Pulse Checking
Your pulse can provide insight into how well your heart is performing.
To perform the activity: Place two fingers on your wrist or neck. Then count your heartbeats over 30 seconds and multiply that number by two.
Normal range: 60–100 beats per minute for adults.
When to worry: Your resting pulse is consistently above 100 or below 60 beats per minute (when not trained as an athlete). This could indicate problems with your heart, or thyroid.
2. Monitoring Blood Pressure
High blood pressure is sometimes referred to as the “silent killer,” as it often does not exhibit symptoms until it is symptomatic with complications.
How to do it: By using a digital monitor. Digital monitors are inexpensive and easy to use. Do not take the reading immediately after exercising. Sit quietly in a seated position for five minutes before measuring.
Normal range: Approximately 120/80 mmHg.
When to worry: If any reading is above 140/90 consistently, it should not simply be ignored.
3. Monitoring Blood Sugar
Since India is the diabetes capital of the world, this is one of the most vital health check-ups at home.
How to do it: You will need a glucometer, and recording the sugars on an empty stomach (more commonly known as fasting) and again two hours after eating.
Normal range:
Fasting blood sugars: 70-99 mg/dL
Post-meal blood sugars: Less than 140 mg/dL
When to worry: High or low blood sugars should be reviewed by your doctor if they happen very frequently.
4. Body Mass Index (BMI) & Waist Circumference
Being overweight is associated with a higher risk for heart disease, diabetes, and joint problems.
How to measure:
The BMI formula equals: weight (kg) / height (m²)
Waist circumference: Measure around the level of your belly button.
Healthy ranges:
BMI 18.5 – 24.9
Waist circumference < 90 cm (men) <80 cm (women)
When to be worried: If your BMI or waist circumference falls in the overweight/obese category, consider making lifestyle changes.
5. Respiratory health (Lung Check)
Healthy lungs are important after living through COVID.
How to measure: Take a big breath in and hold it without exhaling. Most healthy adults can hold their breath for 30-60 seconds. You can also measure your breathing rate; a normal rate is typically between 12-16 breaths per minute.
When to be worried: Ongoing shortness of breath, wheezing, or low breath hold can be signs of asthma, COPD, or other lung conditions.
6. Oral & dental health
The mouth is often the first place to see where our health is changing.
How to measure: Looking at your gums for bleeding, looking at your tongue for coating or lesions, and teeth for sensitivity or cavities.
When to be worried: Unpleasant breath, loose teeth, or mouth sores that won’t heal are not normal health indicators.
7. Skin & Nail Examination
Your skin is a reflection of your inner health.
How to do it: Watch for suspicious moles, sudden rashes, nail color changes, or wounds that heal slowly.
When to worry: Dark streaks under your nails, yellowed skin, or growing moles could indicate a deeper health concern.
8. Vision & Eye Health
With the increasing time spent on computers, eye strain is the most common issue.
How to do it: Consider reading an object at a distance, notice distortion or blurriness of vision, and notice if you experience headaches more often than not. Cover one eye at a time to test your vision.
When to worry: If you have trouble reading, your eyes hurt, or you have chronic dry eyes, this may indicate vision defects, glaucoma or an issue related to diabetes.
9. Mental Health Self-Check
Health isn’t simply physical, there’s emotional health too.
How to do it: Ask yourself (and consider journaling): how have you been feeling? How has your sleep been? Your stress level? Your energy level?
When to worry: If you begin to feel sad often, feel anxious, or are no longer interested in what used to hold your interest, you may benefit from seeking assistance from a professional.
The Necessity of Regular Health Checkups at Home
Identifying Problems Early: You can address health problems before they worsen and require outside intervention.
Convenience: Home healthcare checkups and assessments are far easier to perform than clinic or hospital visits.
Cost Savings: You will spend a lot less on hospital care if you can avoid unnecessary visits.
A Sense of Responsibility for Your Own Health: Home healthcare empowers all patients to take control of their health.
WHEN TO CALL A DOCTOR?
Though health checkups at home are very helpful and effective, they should not substitute for medical care from a physician or health care provide
If you feel symptoms are worsening, readings are repeatedly abnormal, or you have experienced any sudden change in your health, you should call a doctor.
This is one of the areas where HomeDoc can help. We provide not only professional in-home physician consultations, but also lab tests at your front door, as well as personalized, and timely healthcare services.
Final Thoughts
Your health is your greatest asset in life. By proactively doing health checkups at home, you can stay informed about your health, keep it safe, and intervene when you find a problem before it potentially becomes serious.
With the services offered by HomeDoc, you can access reliable patient-centered medical care in-home and make your preventive healthcare simple and accessible, and eliminate the burden of making a visit to your clinic or hospital.
✅ Take your first step to better health today!
