You can easily do these 5 health checkups at home

At-home health checkups can pave way for a better understanding of an underlying health scare. Read on to know more.

Attention Mums! You Can Easily Do These 5 Health Checkups At Home

In this mad rush of our busy lives, we often put our own health on the backseat. Our kids, families and our jobs take precedence over our well-being.

And one of the crucial elements of a healthy lifestyle that we therefore, skip is a regular health checkup.

But amidst a hectic life, parent-teacher conferences and just basically being a mum, there is no time left for any checkups. So how do you then access your health?

Well, the best solution is an at-home health checkup. You can test yourself for basic health problems so you know that you are on track and fit enough to carry on.

Click 'Start Gallery' to see which home checkups you must and can easily do and how.

Self breast examination

Breast cancer has become the number one cancer in Indian females, thus making it crucial for women to get regular examinations.

But before heading to a specialist, make sure to conduct an at-home breast examination first.

For this, look for any dimples, or redness or scales on the breast and also observe the difference in sizes of your two breasts.

You can also check your breasts to look for any possible lumps (they are usually the first signs of tumours).

Heart rate checks

Heart diseases are also silent killers of women across the globe. And with our hectic lifestyles, it is crucial to conduct heart rate check ups at home.

For the purpose, you should first find your pulse and check your heart rate. Keep your index as well as middle finger on your wrist-at the base your thumb and feel the heart beat per minute. Ideally, it should be between 60 and 100 per minute.

If you notice any irregularities, you must report it to a doctor immediately.

Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) check at home

If you feel pain during urination, a burning sensation when you pee, frequent or intense urge to urinate, even though little comes out when you do, pain or pressure in your back or lower abdomen as well as cloudy, dark, bloody, or strange-smelling urine, chances are you are suffering from UTI.

You can conduct an over-the-counter test at home or you could go to the doctor for a urine test just to be absolutely sure.

Ovulation check at home

Ovulation is that time of the month (about 12 to 24 hours) during which the egg is ready for fertilization by the sperm. Here, the eggs are released from the ovaries and this usually happens between two menstrual cycles. Understanding this cycle would help you to know when you are ovulating.

You can use the ovulation strips easily available over-the-counter to know when you are ovulating.

So if you have a 28-day cycle, count the first day of your cycle as day one. Your fertile window will be around 12 to 17 days. However, if your cycle is irregular, then your fertile window could be a week earlier or later.

Pregnancy check at home

This is perhaps the most common home test that most urban women can and must take in case of suspicion of possible pregnancy.

First look out for signs such as missing of periods, tender breast, strong discharge, spotting and mood swings. If you notice any of these, take the at-home over-the-counter pregnancy test.

Also read:Cancer signs that can easily be mistaken for pregnancy symptoms