Health screenings are an essential way to prevent serious illness and death from dangerous conditions like diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Cardiovascular disease includes both heart disease and strokes.

So, what are typical health screenings, and where can you get them?

To answer common questions about health screenings, we consulted with Julie Morain. She’s a nurse and community health and research coordinator with UCHealth’s Healthy Hearts and Minds program. It’s a unique, data-driven, community outreach program with a 30-year track record of providing school-age children and their families with health education, wellness programs and disease prevention classes.

Morain started her nursing career working with very sick patients in hospitals. Her husband’s family also dealt with heart disease.

“My father-in-law died at age 59 of heart disease after two bypass surgeries. I really wanted to protect my husband and kids, so I started studying prevention,” Morain said.

Her experiences — both in hospitals caring for critically ill patients and in her own family —underscored Morain’s desire to reach people as early in life as possible since healthy habits can prevent bad outcomes from diseases like diabetes and heart disease.

“I’m really passionate about this work,” Morain said.

Here are some startling health statistics that Morain cites:

• Many people know about cancer and focus on cancer screenings, which are important. “But cardiovascular disease is the No. 1 cause of death in our country, by far,” Morain said.
• High blood pressure is often called the “silent killer” because most of us with high blood pressure don’t have a single symptom than high blood pressure. So, if you’re not getting your blood pressure checks, you won’t know you have it. “For some people, the first symptom of high blood pressure can be a massive stroke or a fatal heart attack.” That’s why regular blood pressure screenings are so important. Learn more about healthy blood pressure levels.
• High glucose levels and high cholesterol levels, which are risk factors for heart disease, strokes and diabetes, often don’t generate other symptoms of illness. “So, screenings for high glucose and high cholesterol levels save lives,” Morain said. Learn more about healthy cholesterol levels.
• Nearly 40 million people — or nearly 12% of the population in the U.S. — have diabetes, according to health experts at the American Diabetes Association. And an additional 96 million have pre-diabetes. “They haven’t been diagnosed with diabetes, but their blood sugar is elevated, and they’re probably carrying some extra weight. About 81% of people with pre-diabetes do not know they have it,” Morain said. Learn more about diabetes and how you can prevent it.
• Hispanics and Black people have much higher chance of getting diabetes than people of other races and ethnicities. That’s why it’s vital for people of color to get health screenings so they can adopt health habits and prevent illnesses.

A common type of health screening is called a “biometric screening.”

What is a biometric screening?

A biometric screening is a short, basic health screening that includes the following:

• Height and weight to determine body mass index or BMI
• Blood pressure
• Cholesterol levels
• Blood glucose levels

Morain and other team members from the Healthy Hearts and Minds program do free health screenings at schools and community events, like the annual Fiestas Patrias celebration in Colorado Springs.

“We do a finger stick blood test on site. We have a small machine called a ‘CardioChek’ that can give us results on site. So, we will get cholesterol levels — both HDL and LDL, the good and the bad,” Morain said.

“We’ll get triglycerides and glucose levels right on site, and we can go over them with people.”

If you fast before getting your cholesterol levels checked, you can get an even more accurate reading, Morain said.

But even when people aren’t fasting, health experts can get some good information from a basic cholesterol check.

“The quick results give you a very good picture of your risk factors,” Morain said.

Some people wonder whether drinking a lot of coffee or eating a big meal before you get your cholesterol checked can change the readings. Both caffeine and food can change your levels, so fasting is best. But even if you’ve been drinking coffee and have had breakfast or lunch, a free health screening can be helpful.

“We also do a blood pressure reading, and we check height, weight and waist circumference to calculate BMI,” Morain said.

“With all of those numbers, we can then do an assessment of your risk for stroke, diabetes and heart disease. Then we talk about lifestyle changes you can make. We’re not trying to tell people what to do. We’re just showing them their health data, and we talk about their risk factors,” Morain said.

During a health assessment, nurses or other health experts can talk about powerful behavior changes that people can make. These include boosting exercise, eating a healthy diet, drinking fewer sugar-sweetened beverages (or none at all), prioritizing sleep and reducing stress.

“We go over all of these things with people, and it takes about 15 to 20 minutes of time for each person,” Morain said.

Health screenings highlight important data. But people need to follow up with their primary care providers.

Morain and other experts at Healthy Hearts and minds are careful to tell people that they can provide valuable health information, but they’re not doctors.

“We aren’t diagnosing people with anything. But if we’re showing elevated cholesterol, elevated glucose or elevated blood pressure, we’ll encourage people to go see their doctor,” Morain said.

“We have great screening tools, and we can help people maintain healthy habits or make changes in their lives that will help them continue down a healthy road.

What the data show: Why are health screenings important?

People who get regular health screenings and those who see their primary care provider for regular prevention visits stay healthier.

Data from children and adults who have participated in the Healthy Hearts and Minds program also show that people can change their health habits and maintain progress over time.

Through the program, health educators start seeing kids in schools when they’re in the fourth or fifth grade. They can continue to see them over time through high school. With permission from parents, health educators can do biometric screenings. And the entire family can participate in the program if they wish.

“For kids who have more personal risk factors or a strong family history of diabetes or cardiovascular disease, we can do a six-week program.

“They come together with other families. It’s very interactive. We supply a free, healthy dinner and then we meet and talk for about an hour-and-a-half each time,” Morain said. “We talk about exercise, nutrition, sleep, stress reduction and how can change risk factors.”

During one session, health educators spend time with participants going on a trip to the grocery store.

“We help people figure out how to buy healthier foods. It’s a really powerful program,” Morain said.

Many families make lasting changes.

“We’ve had some people come back for a screening five years after they were in the Family Program, and they’re still maintaining healthy changes,” Morain said.

Health screenings are a vital first step for people to take better control of their health.

Morain and others love helping people understand the benefits of knowing where they stand.

“Preventive health is going to be the wave of the future because we need to prevent deaths from heart disease and diabetes,” she said.

The team is marking its third year of offering free health screenings at Fiestas Patrias and loves supporting the community.

“It’s a great event. They have beautiful music and dancing and all kinds of food trucks.”