If you put them together here, you can see the signs of cancer

Health is the capital of revolution. Health is no small matter. Even if you insist on having a physical examination once a year, there is no guarantee that everything will be fine for your body. Master a few of the most practical self-examination methods, check carefully every once in a while, and become familiar with every change in your body, so you can take your health into your own hands. Here are the 8 most practical "body self-examination methods" in daily life.

Check your skin from head to toe

Dr. Jeanine Downey of the American Skin Cancer Foundation wrote in the U.S. Today website that people can perform a skin self-examination once a month.

First, ensure sufficient lighting and find a mirror that is similar to your height so that you can carefully check your whole body. Then find a small mirror to check areas that are difficult to see with a large mirror. When checking, be thorough and careful, leaving no part out from head to toe, including fingers, toes, scalp, armpits and other hidden areas.

Secondly, you should be familiar with the locations of birthmarks and spots on your body so that you can quickly recognize any new changes.

Again, pay special attention to new spots, sore spots that don't heal in two or three months, and spots that increase in size or change in color. Early-stage skin cancer spots appear flat or raised, sometimes bleed with the slightest irritation, or form scabs for no reason. If the scab does not disappear for a long time, it should be taken seriously.

Finally, malignant melanoma is identified. They generally have the following forms: asymmetrical shape; rough and irregular edges; mixed colors, such as brown, pink, white, red and blue; diameter exceeding 6 mm (about the size of the cross-section of a pencil). If you find these conditions, you should go to the hospital as soon as possible.

Put three fingers together to check lymph nodes

Lymph nodes are bean-shaped tissues of varying sizes in the lymphatic system that are distributed throughout the body. When bacteria, foreign matter, or cancer cells pass through the lymph nodes, the lymphocytes "rise up in rebellion." At this time, the lymph nodes may become swollen, painful, hard or soft, or ulcerated, which should be taken seriously.

Ke Xiaoyan, deputy leader of the Lymphoma Group of the Hematology Branch of the Chinese Medical Association, pointed out that superficial lymph nodes in most parts of the body can be self-examined by touch, such as the neck, armpits, and groin.

Inspection method: Put the index finger, middle finger and ring finger together, place the fingertips flat on the part to be inspected and slide them. The touch can be rotated when sliding, or along straight lines that are perpendicular to each other. Normal lymph nodes are the size of a grain of rice, soft, smooth, and movable, and are difficult to feel. If you suddenly find that your lymph nodes are significantly swollen or enlarged rapidly, be sure to see a doctor immediately.

Check your breasts 9 to 11 days after your period

Breast cancer has become the "number one enemy" of urban women's health. Regular self-examination of the breasts can help detect problems early.

Yuan Peng, professor of internal medicine at the Cancer Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, recommends that women perform breast self-examinations every month. During the examination, first stand in front of the mirror and observe the shape of the breast to see whether the normal curved contour becomes irregular, whether there are orange peel-like pits, and whether there is liquid overflowing from the nipple when squeezed.

Lie flat on the bed, with the nipple as the center, use the fingertips to massage the skin in a clockwise circular motion. When checking, apply even force, so that your fingers can touch the ribs. Remember to check your armpits and collarbone area, as some growths may also grow around the breasts. If you feel a nodule or lump during self-examination, you should go to the hospital for further examination.

The best time for self-examination is the 9th to 11th day after menstruation, when it is easier to detect lesions; middle-aged and elderly women after menopause are not restricted by time and can check at any time.

Pay attention to urination and check the prostate

To some extent, male aging starts with the prostate. Dr. Christopher Eaton, a urologist at the Royal Surrey County Hospital in the UK, said that men should pay more attention to prostate health after the age of 50.

Yang Jiankun, deputy chief physician of the Urology Department of the Third Affiliated Hospital of Southern Medical University, suggested that men should always pay attention to their urination. First, confirm whether you have frequent urination. This is the earliest manifestation of prostate hyperplasia. It starts with frequent urination at night and then during the day. The symptoms will become more severe in the later stages. It is generally believed that urinating more than 6 times on average during the day and more than 2 times at night can be considered frequent urination.

Secondly, whether there is difficulty urinating. Obstructive dysuria is characterized by hesitation, intermittent urination, thin and weak urine stream, and incomplete urination; irritant dysuria is characterized by frequent urination, frequent urination at night, urgency, and pain when urinating.

Finally, whether hematuria occurs, if the capillaries of the prostatic mucosa are congested and the small blood vessels are dilated, they will rupture and bleed when pulled by the filling and contraction of the bladder.

Clench your fist to measure blood vessels

Clench your hands for 30 seconds, then open them and observe how long it takes for the whitening of your palms to disappear. Liu Lisong, deputy director of the outpatient department of Beijing Xuanwu Hospital and chief physician of the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, said that if the palm can quickly restore its original color, it means that the blood vessels are healthy, elastic, and the endothelial function is good; if it takes more than 20 seconds for the skin color to recover, it means that the endothelial function may be incomplete, the blood vessels are elastic, and the blood flow is not smooth, and you should be careful about atherosclerosis.

Four ways to check for osteoporosis

Lin Hua, chief physician of the Department of Orthopedics at Nanjing University Drum Tower Hospital, believes that although bone density testing is the most accurate standard for diagnosing osteoporosis, observing whether the following changes occur in the body in daily life can also help to discover bone problems:

Check to see if the teeth are loose. If looseness occurs even though there is no dental disease, you should be alert to the possibility that it is caused by osteoporosis.

Look at the spine at the back. When osteoporosis occurs, the spine is more likely to deform and height will decrease accordingly.

Look at the walking. If you stagger from side to side and feel unsteady when walking, be careful as it may be due to osteoporosis.

Check to see if the nails become soft. Osteoporosis patients suffer from bone loss, which manifests itself as softening of the nails.

Check the thyroid gland by touching the neck

Sun Lingyu, deputy chief physician of the Department of Oncology at the Fourth Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, pointed out that in addition to sudden hoarseness, choking when drinking water, difficulty swallowing and breathing, and radiating pain in the ears and shoulders, more than 95% of thyroid patients will have a lump in the front of the neck, which is generally painless.

Sun Lingyu suggested that people should often touch their necks. If any of the following four situations occur, they should pay attention and seek medical attention in time: 1. A round lump appears on the neck; 2. The diameter of the lump exceeds 2 cm; 3. A single nodule is enlarged and the surface is not smooth; 4. The lump grows rapidly and may increase significantly within a dozen days or one or two months.

Two ways to check the heart

Cao Qiufu, chief physician of the Department of Cardiology at the China-Japan Friendship Hospital, recommends that you self-test your heart every 3 to 6 months.

Young and middle-aged people can use the following method: lie down and rest for a while, feel the pulse or wear a pulse watch to record the heart rate for 1 minute; then stand up quickly from the lying position, record the heart rate for 15 seconds, multiply it by 4 to get the heart rate; finally, compare the two heart rates. The greater the difference between the two heart rates, the better the heart function; if the difference is less than 10, it means that the heart function is poor and should be checked.

The elderly can use the 6-minute walking method to test: walk back and forth for 6 minutes at a distance of 30 meters. The speed can be determined by their own physical fitness, and finally the walking distance is calculated. Level one is less than 300 meters, level two is 300-374.9 meters, level three is 375-449.5 meters, and level four is more than 450 meters. The lower the level, the worse the heart function.

It should be noted that for those with poor heart function, especially elderly patients, it is best to conduct the initial test under the guidance of medical staff. If you experience chest pain, shortness of breath or other discomfort, you should not force yourself to continue, so as to avoid worsening heart failure or other complications.