With roughly half of U.S. adults living with some form of cardiovascular disease , it’s almost a shock that routine visits to the cardiologist aren’t more normalized. Unlike something like a fever or infection that may otherwise prompt a quicker visit to the doctor, heart disease develops silently, with risk factors building for years before symptoms appear. To catch potential problems before they become serious, preventive screening and regular checkups are especially important for men over 50.

“High blood pressure, high cholesterol, and elevated blood sugar can all develop without obvious symptoms,” says Sirisha Vadali, MD, a board-certified cardiologist and advanced lipidologist of HonorHealth . “By the time someone feels chest pain or has a heart attack, risk factors may have been present for years. Testing gives us the opportunity to identify those risks earlier and decide what to do about them, whether that means lifestyle changes, medication, or a closer look at the arteries.…