Your guide to preventative health screenings you should get in your 20s

Preventative care and screenings are important steps you can take for your health — and that's true even for young adults in their 20s, who may feel invincible but shouldn't take good health for granted.

CBS News HealthWatch has compiled a series of guides to help you know which preventative screenings should be on your list, starting with people in their 20s and in each decade through your 60s and beyond. For the youngest age group in our series, there are plenty of ways to get a healthy head start.

"If everyone followed our preventative health screenings, we would catch disease earlier. We would be able to treat it and be more successful," Dr. Robert M. Biernbaum, chief medical officer for WellNow Urgent Care, told CBS News. "Instead of seeing end stage breast cancer, end stage colon cancer, we would catch them at a younger age and they would have a better outcome. So prevention is the key to being healthy."

So what should 20-somethings have on their preventative checklist? Here is a look at the guidelines experts recommend for people at average risk:

Vaccines to have in your 20s

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, all adults 19 to 26 years old should make sure they're up to date on the following vaccines: 

• Chickenpox (varicella) vaccine

• COVID-19 vaccine — Updated COVID vaccines are recommended for people ages 6 months and up to reduce the risk of severe illness, hospitalization and death from the virus.

• Flu vaccine — Biernbaum says the flu shot isn't something people often think about as a preventative measure, but is a top recommendation. "Flu vaccine is recommended from the ages of 6 months to 80-plus years," he says.

• MMR vaccine (measles, mumps, and rubella)  — The MMR vaccine is crucial to prevent measles outbreaks, which have flared up in a number of U.S. communities in recent years.

• Tdap vaccine (Tetanus, diphtheria, and whooping cough) or Td vaccine (tetanus, diphtheria)
  

• Hepatitis B vaccine

• HPV vaccine (human papillomavirus) — Biernbaum says the HPV vaccine is one of the "most important vaccines that has ever been discovered." The reason it's so critically important for younger people? "Human papilloma virus is a virus that is directly correlated to cervical cancer and anal cancer, so that vaccine for our younger population is lifesaving." The virus is also correlated with cancers of the back of the throat, penis, vagina and vulva.

  The HPV vaccine is recommended at age 11 up through age 26, "So if people didn't receive it at 11, they can receive it up to age 26," he says. 

  "The U.S. lags far behind other comparable countries, like Canada and Australia, in vaccinating against HPV. That's unfortunate because the HPV vaccines, Gardasil and Cervarix, are highly effective in preventing cervical and anal cancer. Gardasil has the added benefit of also preventing genital and anal warts," says Dr. Céline Gounder, a CBS News medical contributor and editor-at-large for public health at KFF Health News.

Other health screenings for your 20s

Other screenings that Biernbaum noted as "critically important that should start age 18" are hepatitis C screenings and screenings for STIs (sexually transmitted infections) and HIV, which are recommended at age 18 or when someone becomes sexually active.

This is especially important ss the United States has seen an increase in STDs over the last 10 years, explains Dr. Céline Gounder, a CBS News medical contributor and editor-at-large for public health at KFF Health News.

"Chlamydia, gonorrhea syphilis are up. This is in part because people are using condoms a lot less, which is an unfortunate trend in terms of preventing not just STDs, but also HIV, hepatitis, unwanted pregnancy," she says. "But we should be testing everybody at least once a time for HIV and hepatitis C. And if you're sexually active, especially not using a condom, you should be regularly screened for chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis."

Diabetes screening is recommended starting at age 20, Biernbaum says. "Especially in our country, we're seeing a large shift in diabetes at younger ages due to unfortunately a society where we continue to see a lot of obesity," he says. 

Cholesterol tests are recommended because many people don't know if their levels are high, since high cholesterol doesn't have symptoms, the CDC explains. "Your health care team can do a simple blood test, called a lipid profile, to measure your cholesterol levels," the CDC says, recommending a test should be done between ages 17 and 21 and again every 4 to 6 years, for "most healthy adults."

Other screenings to consider include a blood pressure screening to check for risk of cardiovascular disease, a dermatological exam to check for skin cancer, and an eye exam. 

Oral exams and dental cleanings are also important to keep up with. The American Dental Association recommends regular dentist visits, for most people twice a year.

In your 20s and beyond, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, or USPSTF, an independent panel of national experts, recommends screenings for intimate partner violence, unhealthy alcohol and drug use as well as tobacco use.

For women, cervical cancer screening should start at age 21 and is recommended every 3 years for women in their 20s, for those at average risk, the USPSTF says. An annual checkup with an OB-GYN is also recommended by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. "People get confused," Biernbaum says. "Annually, people should receive an exam, but cervical cancer screening should be done every 3 years at a younger age and then it can be every 5 if the right testing was done."

Mental health screenings in your 20s

When talking about health, you can't forget mental health. Depression and suicide risk screenings are recommend for children and adolescents starting at age 12, so take note if this isn't something you've discussed with a health care provider by your 20s.

"Mental health is something that, unfortunately, our country doesn't pay enough attention to," Biernbaum says. "In reality that screening should be started at age 12 and it should be continued every single year during a person's life."

This guide is based on guidelines from health organizations and experts for people at average risk. Age and frequency of screenings may differ for individuals based on family history and personal risk factors. This does not take the place of your personal doctor's recommendations for your health.