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What blood tests should I have?

A thorough physical exam includes some routine blood tests and, I believe, at least one that you should request if it's not offered: a check of your vitamin D level (deficiency is common). You should have the following tests every time you have a complete physical: CBC and differential: This complete blood count measures your red blood cells (which carry oxygen throughout the body), your white blood cells (your immune cells) and platelets (which help blood clot) as well as the shapes, sub-types and sizes of these cells. Here, the trend over time is more important than any single finding: a low red blood cell count might mean anemia (the "differential" analysis tells you whether a low count stems from...

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