It won’t be long and the ball will drop in Times Square, kicking off a brand new year. Couples will kiss at midnight and new years resolutions will be quickly made.

One of the most popular resolutions made every year is to improve health. So, before your health resolution fades, faster than the confetti hits the ground, let’s review five blood tests that can ensure that you are on the path to good health.

Cholesterol Test

Not just any cholesterol test, but a VAP Test. In addition to the typical lipid panel you normally receive (total cholesterol, triglycerides, HDL, LDL, ratios), the VAP Test provides a lot more information to determine a better picture of your “heart health”. It analyzes the smaller particles of cholesterol to give you much better detail on your risk factors.

Glucose Test

There are millions of Americans who have been diagnosed with diabetes and many more who have the disease without knowing it. A fasting glucose test determines the level of blood sugar you have. Since, abnormal blood sugar levels can become so problematic with a persons health, this test is an important one.

Chlamydia Test

Stop blushing. The Chlamydia infection is the leading sexually transmitted disease (STD) and infects approximately 2.8 million people every year. The problem is that, in many cases, there are no signs or symptoms. Complications are found most often in women, in some cases leading to infertility. So, stop blushing and get a chlamydia test.

Vitamin D Test

New research indicates the vital importance of Vitamin D and the fact that many of us (including children) are lacking it. Vitamin D is actually produced by the body when we are exposed to sunlight. Lack of Vitamin D has been shown to cause numerous health issues - everything from bone loss to increased cardiovascular disease.

Thyroid Panel

The thyroid gland produces hormones that help to manage metabolism. When the thyroid gland does not function properly, an individual may develop hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid) or hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid). Proper control of thyroid hormones is important as they impact so many other systems. A simple thyroid test can assess your thyroid health

By taking good care of yourself now, you’ll hopefully be able to attend many New Years parties in the future.

What over the counter medicine should I take? All of us have asked this question before. We want to know what is safe for us and what is harmful to us. So, I will reveal four dangerous mistakes people make at the pharmacy.

You need to make sure you go and visit your pharmacist and ask them any questions you need asked.

4 Over The Counter Medicine Mistakes:

1) You must make sure you never mix any pain pills with other blood thinner pills. The thing with this is that the pain pill could cause problems with your stomach. Lets say you already have a stomach ulcer and you take a blood thinner pill, therefore you don’t have a clot anymore, so the blood will start to leak through your stomach. So, to be safe, ask your doctor or pharmacist before taking anything.

2) Make sure you don’t mix any pain pills with diet pills

3) Don’t mix calcium and thyroid drugs together. You should take any thyroid medicine first thing in the morning and before you eat anything. Always take thyroid drugs at least four hours before taking calcium or any other medications. If you take calcium with your thyroid drugs together, they will combine so it will be difficult for the thyroid medication to be absorbed into your body properly.

4) Make sure you never mix blood pressure or diabetes drugs with decongestants. You need to remember some decongestants contain some sugar in them so they will effect your blood sugar levels and rise your blood pressure. In effect, what you are doing is you will not be receiving the benefit of taking blood pressure drugs.

Diuretics side effects can have a great impact on your health. Diuretics have the effect of removing the fluids from the body. These types of medications are also called water pills. The way the fluids are removed from the body is through urination. Diuretics are used for several purposes. One of the uses is to treat a condition called edema. This disease results in an accumulation of fluids in the human body. Another use of these drugs and perhaps the main one is to lower blood pressure. This is done by removing the salts and fluids from the body lowering the blood volume.

These types of drugs are very inexpensive. You could say they are one of the most economical ways to prevent a stroke. They are also helpful in preventing blood clots. Some studies claim they are also useful in preventing bone fracture among older people. Some people use diuretics as a means to lose weight. However losing weight by the use of diuretics is not healthy, in fact can be dangerous. Removing the fluids from the body will only lead to a temporary weight loss and by using them too much you are risking yourself to be dehydrated. Some diuretics side effects can be real serious. One of the main side effects is that they cause impotency in men. Research shows than 33% of the men taking diuretics will become impotent. Other side effects are a raise in the blood sugar levels, which fortunately do not last once you stop taking the medication, they can also bother your stomach so taking a diuretic with food is way better than alone.

Sadly that is not all; when the drug is removing the salts from your body via urination it can also remove important nutrients from your body such as potassium. Potassium is very important for the health of your heart. A low potassium level in your blood can cause severe heart problems like arrhythmias; which is why many doctors recommend taking diuretics along with potassium supplements. One important detail to notice is that even when diuretics can lower your blood pressure they will not decrease the chance of suffering a heart attack. Various of them can even raise your cholesterol levels, which definitely will not help you in preventing heart diseases.

There are natural diuretics like cranberries and cranberry juice that can help you but even then you must consult your doctor before stopping your medication.