High Blood Pressure
High blood pressure often has no symptoms, but over time it can damage the heart, brain, kidneys, and eyes.
Helpful actions
- Know the blood-pressure goal given by your clinician.
- Measure at home with a validated upper-arm cuff and record trends.
- Take medicines exactly as prescribed; do not stop them on your own.
- Discuss sodium, activity, sleep, smoking, and alcohol with your care team.
Call 911 for chest pressure, severe shortness of breath, fainting, or stroke warning signs such as facial droop, arm weakness, or speech difficulty.
Diabetes
Diabetes affects how the body uses glucose. Management may include food planning, activity, monitoring, medicines, and routine preventive care.
Helpful actions
- Know when and how to check glucose if instructed.
- Learn your individualized low- and high-glucose action plan.
- Keep foot, eye, kidney, dental, and heart-health appointments.
- Carry fast-acting glucose if your treatment can cause hypoglycemia.
Seek urgent help for severe confusion, unconsciousness, seizure, trouble breathing, persistent vomiting, or inability to keep fluids down.
Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) and ESRD
CKD means the kidneys are damaged or cannot filter blood as well as they should. Early CKD may have no symptoms. Advanced kidney failure—also called end-stage renal disease (ESRD) or end-stage kidney disease—may require dialysis, a kidney transplant, or an individualized conservative-management plan.
Helpful actions
- Ask about kidney blood and urine tests if you have diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, or a family history of kidney failure.
- Work with your care team to manage blood pressure, blood sugar, medicines, nutrition, activity, and smoking cessation.
- Review pain relievers, over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, herbs, and supplements with a healthcare professional because some may harm the kidneys or require dose changes.
- Follow your individualized sodium, potassium, phosphorus, protein, and fluid guidance; kidney nutrition needs are not the same for everyone.
- If you receive dialysis, keep treatments and protect your access site. Discuss transplant evaluation and treatment choices early when appropriate.
Seek urgent help for severe shortness of breath, chest pain, new confusion, fainting, seizures, rapidly worsening swelling, or uncontrolled bleeding from a dialysis access. Call 911 for life-threatening symptoms.
Learn more from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.
Asthma
Asthma causes airway inflammation and episodes of cough, wheeze, chest tightness, or shortness of breath.
Helpful actions
- Follow your written asthma action plan.
- Know the difference between controller and quick-relief medicines.
- Ask for inhaler and spacer technique checks.
- Track triggers and increasing quick-relief inhaler use.
Call 911 for severe breathing difficulty, blue or gray lips, inability to speak normally, confusion, or symptoms not improving with the emergency plan.
COPD
COPD is a long-term lung condition that can make breathing and daily activity difficult. Treatment can reduce symptoms and flare-ups.
Helpful actions
- Avoid tobacco smoke and lung irritants; ask about quitting support.
- Use inhalers and oxygen only as prescribed.
- Ask about pulmonary rehabilitation, vaccines, activity pacing, and nutrition.
- Report worsening breathlessness, fever, or a change in mucus promptly.
Call 911 for severe breathing difficulty, new confusion, blue or gray lips, fainting, or chest pain.
Obesity and Healthy Weight
Obesity is a complex chronic condition influenced by biology, medicines, sleep, environment, access, and other factors—not simply willpower.
Helpful actions
- Choose respectful goals tied to health, mobility, strength, and quality of life.
- Build sustainable eating and movement routines that fit your abilities.
- Discuss sleep, stress, medicines, and related conditions.
- Ask about evidence-based treatment options when appropriate.
Progress may include better energy, sleep, laboratory results, mobility, strength, and daily function—not only weight.
High Cholesterol
Cholesterol results are interpreted together with age, blood pressure, diabetes, smoking, family history, and overall cardiovascular risk.
Helpful actions
- Ask what your LDL, HDL, triglycerides, and overall risk mean.
- Choose heart-supportive foods and regular movement as appropriate.
- Take prescribed cholesterol medicines consistently.
- Report suspected medicine side effects instead of stopping treatment without guidance.
Call 911 for possible heart-attack or stroke symptoms.
Reducing Cancer Risk
Not every cancer can be prevented, but healthy choices, certain vaccines, and appropriate screening can lower risk or help find some cancers earlier.
Helpful actions
- Do not use tobacco. If you do, ask your healthcare professional about proven support for quitting.
- Limit alcohol, protect your skin from ultraviolet exposure, stay active, and work toward a healthy weight in ways appropriate for you.
- Ask whether HPV and hepatitis B vaccination are appropriate for your age and health history.
- Discuss which breast, cervical, colorectal, lung, or other cancer screenings are appropriate based on your age, sex, smoking history, family history, and personal risk.
- Report a new lump, unexplained bleeding, persistent cough, unexplained weight loss, a changing mole, or another lasting unexplained change to a healthcare professional.
Screening schedules are individualized. Do not delay evaluation of symptoms while waiting for a routine screening appointment.
