I started this year with a few short plans to work on health factors in my life. Some of it was prescribed; I needed a physical exam for certain pension forms. Others were ones that I was trying to do some proactive work on, like my teeth and my feet. And still others were more responsive, like finding out my A1C numbers had jumped precipitously into the hard-core diabetic range.
But I have trouble visualizing all of it, and since I’m a planner by heart and often by profession, I like the idea of some sort of framework, perhaps with a bit of a dashboard, to monitor it more easily. I have MY list of things, but what else am I missing?
AI has entered the chat
In addition to my list, I thought, why not let AI do some secondary and tertiary research for me on the web? I went through multiple iterations, multiple questions, and here’s my curated list after it was done feeding me stuff. I liked the list of preventative health categories, but it is far too simple, with lots of stuff missing or not intuitive as a layperson to categorize.
- Cardiometabolic health (heart, circulation, diabetes)
- Cancer screening
- Organ systems
- Functional health (mobility, hearing, cognition)
- Lifestyle + behavioural health
A deeper dive allowed me to come up with 15 major domains:
| DOMAIN | INCLUSIONS | METRICS | STATUS |
|---|---|---|---|
| CARDIOVASCULAR | Vitals Blood chemistry Structural/imaging Circulation | – Blood pressure (longevity) – Resting heart rate (longevity) – Fitness heart rate (VO2 Max?) (longevity) – Total cholesterol – LDL (longevity), HDL, Triglycerides? – hs-CRP (longevity) – ECG – Echocardiogram – Stress test – Coronary calcium score? – Peripheral artery disease screening? – Ankle-brachial index? OPTIONAL: – Saturation levels – Heart rate variability – ApoB – Lipoprotein(a)? | – Need to do ongoing BP monitoring for a week, but have history of high controlled with meds, a bit higher recently (first number, not second) – Lab work came back good on all the blood stuff – Had ECG, echocardiogram and stress test within last five years, no issues for my heart – Not sure what the last three are |
| METABOLIC / DIABETES | Glucose Kidney Neuropathy Feet | – Fasting glucose – HbA1c (longevity) – Insulin resistance markers – Neuropathy – Foot exams – Weight / BMI – Waist circumference (longevity) OPTIONAL: – Body fat % – Fasting insulin – HOMA-IR (insulin resistance) – Waist to height ratio | – A1C was high at lab work (13!) so getting it down with higher Metformin doses and dietary shifts, working well – Neuropathy fine – Looking after feet with chiropodist – Weight, BMI, waist later this year |
| GASTROINTESTINAL | Upper GI Lower GI | – GERD severity – Barrett’s esophagus risk? – Endoscopy, if indicated? – Colonoscopy – Stool tests, including cancer screening – IBS symptoms | – Had endoscopy and colonoscopy within 10y, all good – Need stool sample test – Would like to get off PPI eventually – Not severe enough for IBS, but not great either |
| CANCER SCREENING | Colon Prostate Skin Lung Testicular | – Colonoscopy, stool test – PSA test, prostate exam – Skin cancer check – Low-dose CT, if indicated – Self-exams | – Need to do a provincial stool test – Would like to see a dermatologist for skin, if GP suggests – Could do more on self-checks |
| KIDNEY AND URINARY | Diabetes-related | – Creatinine – eGFR – Urine microalbumin – Urinary symptoms – Kidney ultrasound, if needed | Recent lab work all good |
| LIVER & METABOLIC ORGAN | Organs | – AST – ALT – Fatty liver risk – Alcohol intake – Ultrasound, if abnormal | Not sure what most of those are, but have no alcohol and had ultrasound of all organs 2 years ago (back problems, looking for kidney stones or anything else causing referral, all normal) |
| ENDOCRINE / HORMONES | Hormones | – Testerone – Thyroid (TSH) – Vitamin D – Cortisol (if symptoms) OPTIONAL: – B12 | All labs are normal |
| MUSCULOSKELETAL | Strength Bone Joint health Mobility | – Grip strength (longevity) – Leg strength (longevity) – Bone density scan (DEXA) – Arthritis – Cartilage wear – Gait speed (longevity) – Balance OPTIONAL: – Squat capacity | – Need to build core and arm, leg strength – Not sure how I would measure grip strength or gait speed – Always worried about knees but haven’t bothered me as much lately – Balance issues seems to be purely head (vertigo with certain meds) |
| PHYSICAL FITNESS | Aerobic Strength Flexibility Recovery | – Cycling, walking, kayaking – Heart-rate zones – Lifting (longevity) – Resistance (longevity) – Stretching – Yoga – Resting HR (longevity) – Sleep quality | – Main goal for April+ – Sleep has been all over the place the last few weeks, but seems to be settling back down |
| NEUROLOGICAL & COGNITIVE | Cognitive Neurological Sleep | – Memory changes – Executive function – Tremor – Neuropathy – Coordination – Sleep apnea – Sleep duration (longevity) OPTIONAL: – Daytime fatigue – Attention | – Executive mostly fine, but I would like a better set of tests tailored to me to test – No neuro issues – Memory isn’t quite as quick as it used to be – Apnea under control, but want a new machine – Duration bouncing around with new meds |
| MENTAL | Mood Treatment Lifestyle | – Depression – Anxiety – Medication impacts – Therapy – Meditation – Stress level – Burnout | – SSRIs are working well, pluses and minuses – Stress for retirement, mostly manageable – Work up and down |
| SENSORY | Vision Hearing Dental | – Eye exam – Glaucoma – Cataracts – Macular degeneration – Audiogram – Hearing changes – Periodontal disease – Cavities – Bite alignment | – Eyes are managed – Need hearing test and aids – Need 2 crowns and deep cavity fixed |
| SKIN | Dermatology | – Mole changes – Skin cancer screening – Sun exposure | On my list for later this year |
| CIRCULATION & LYMPHATIC | Circulation Lymphatic | – Edema severity – Varicose veins – Venous insufficiency – Lymphatic swelling | – All good except for edema on shins (colour) – Getting new compression socks and liners |
| IMMUNIZATION & INFECTION | Vaccines | – Shingles – Influenza – Tetanus – Pneumococcal – COVID | I don’t have tetanus or pneumoccal, but get flu & COVID and got my shingles |
| SOCIAL | Social time Community Friendships Loneliness | – Duration, frequency (longevity) – Degree of closeness – Episodes, feelings of isolation |
For the ongoing monitoring, a bunch of the frameworks out there suggest four monitoring levels:
- Lifestyle — Exercise, diet, alcohol, sleep, stress, meditation
- Functional — Fitness, strength, mobility, balance, hearing, vision, cognition
- Medical risk — BP, cholesterol, glucose, weight, kidney markers, liver markers
- Disease surveillance — Colonsocopy, prostate screening, imaging, bone density, vaccines
It’s not bad, I might be able to merge that with something for PACE planning (primary, alternate, contingency, emergency). Although there is an element of time in there too — daily (exercise, sleep, BP), annual (labs, exam), decade (colonoscopy, bone density, imaging). Not sure I’m down for all those.
Anyone see anything missing before I build my dashboard?
