Your Checkup

10/26/2026

Continuous glucose monitors! With a new study out, we felt inspired to revisit this interesting technology.

Join us this week for some enrichment and education, and a little banter!

10/19/2026

10/12/2026

We trace how a deep vein blood clot forms, breaks free, and lodges in the lungs as a pulmonary embolism, and we explain why symptoms can range from sharp chest pain to sudden collapse. We also lay out what makes us worry, how clinicians test and treat PE, and when you should stop guessing at home and get urgent help.

10/05/2026

Three names on the appointment screen: flu, COVID, RSV.
Do you need all three? Every year? And what changes if you’re scheduling for a child, an older parent, or a new baby?
This week on Your Checkup,we explain the different protection plans and the details worth checking before your appointment. We’re using recommendations from medical societies, including AAFP, AAP, ACOG, and IDSA.
Listen through the link in our bio. Save this for your fall planning—and send it to the person coordinating everyone else’s appointments.

09/29/2026

You’ve heard “eat less salt” for your blood pressure. But what could you add to your plate?

This week on Your Checkup, we’re talking potassium—and giving bananas a little competition.

We cover everyday foods that contain potassium, how it fits into blood pressure control, and why a lower-sodium salt isn’t automatically right for everyone. We also explain why potassium pills aren’t a DIY blood pressure plan.

If you have kidney disease, a history of high potassium, or take medicines that affect potassium, check with your clinician before increasing your intake. Ask before starting a potassium-based salt or supplement.

Listen to “Potassium and Blood Pressure: More Than Cutting Salt.” Link in bio.

What’s a vegetable you actually look forward to eating?

General education, not personal medical advice.

09/27/2026

A stroke does not have to hurt.

Sudden changes in balance, vision, facial movement, arm strength, or speech are enough to call 911—even if the person seems comfortable, and even if the symptoms start to improve.

Save B.E. F.A.S.T. before you need it. Our new episode explains what is happening in the brain and why every minute matters. Listen at the link in bio.

09/23/2026

A stroke can be an emergency even when the person is awake, comfortable, and in no pain.

Remember B.E. F.A.S.T.: sudden trouble with Balance, Eyes, Face, Arm, or Speech means it is Time to call 911. If the symptoms improve or disappear, call anyway. Do not drive the person yourself, and do not try to decide at home whether the problem is a clot or bleeding.

Save this carousel now—because an emergency is a terrible time to learn the signs for the first time.

Our new episode breaks down what happens in the brain, what the ER needs to know, and why treatment depends on urgent imaging. Listen at the link in bio.

09/21/2026

A stroke doesn’t always hurt—and that can make it dangerously easy to wait.

In this week’s episode, we break down what actually happens during a stroke, why a blocked blood vessel and bleeding in the brain can cause similar symptoms, and why you don’t need to identify the type before calling for help.

Remember B.E. F.A.S.T.:

B — Balance changes
E — Eye or vision changes
F — Face drooping
A — Arm weakness
S — Speech difficulty
T — Time to call 911

Even if the symptoms improve or disappear, it is still an emergency.

Listen to the new episode of Your Checkup wherever you get your podcasts—and share this with someone who should know the signs.

Congrats to Sam Hofbauer and Meg Heller on their beautiful wedding!

HealthLiteracy YourCheckupPodast

09/18/2026

Your eGFR came back low. Does that mean your kidneys are failing?

Not necessarily.

A single eGFR result is a snapshot—not the whole diagnosis. Dehydration, a recent illness, and certain medications can temporarily affect creatinine and the resulting eGFR.

The right response is not to ignore it or immediately assume the worst. It’s to look at the context, repeat the test when appropriate, check urine albumin, and see whether the change persists.

Because chronic kidney disease is usually identified by a pattern over time—not one red number in your patient portal.

🎧 Learn more in Episode 126 of Your Checkup: Understanding Your Kidneys: Creatinine, eGFR and Urine Protein Results.

Have you ever opened your lab results and had no idea what your eGFR meant?

YourCheckupPodcast