Undergo preventive health screening from age 25: Prathap C. Reddy
Ahead of World Heart Day on September 29, Apollo Hospitals founder and chairman Prathap C. Reddy on Friday urged people not to assume they are healthy merely because they exercise, and to consult a doctor for preventive health screening from the age of 25. Earlier, checks were recommended between 30 and 60, he said. Non-communicable diseases including heart attacks, strokes, cancers and diabetes were serious problems, he added, noting only 25% of those coming for preventive checks were women.
Source
The Hindu — Cities · read the original report ↗
Desk check · compared with the source
What the desk checked (5)
- Preventive health screening should begin at age 25, revised from the earlier 30-60 recommendation. — Directly quoted and attributed to Prathap C. Reddy of Apollo Hospitals; no independent guideline cited in source.
- Only 25% of those coming for Apollo's preventive health checks are women. — Figure appears in source as a direct quote from Dr. Reddy; no underlying data set given.
- Non-communicable diseases such as heart attacks, strokes, cancers and diabetes are among India's most serious problems. — Attributed opinion of Dr. Reddy; no statistics or external source provided.
- Risk factors for heart attacks in young people include smoking, stress, inactivity, lack of diet restrictions, hypertension, diabetes and family history. — Attributed to Dr. Reddy in the source text.
- World Heart Day falls on September 29. — Stated as fact in the source; date appears in the article.
Analysts’ view opinion
Lowering the suggested screening age from 30 to 25 is clinically plausible, but it is worth reading for what it is: advice from the head of a large private hospital group, not a change in government policy. Bringing preventive checks forward is a sensible direction for India's non-communicable disease burden, yet the story leaves the two decisive policy questions — who pays, and where the capacity sits — unanswered. The detail that only 25% of those turning up for preventive checks are women points to a demand-side inequity that awareness messaging alone rarely fixes.
- This is a recommendation, not a mandate: nothing in the story indicates screening from 25 has been adopted by any government scheme or insurance benefit package.
- NCD prevention is fundamentally primary-care work, and a screening model promoted from the private sector risks reaching urban, middle-class consumers first.
- The 25% female attendance figure likely reflects structural barriers — time, travel, cost, intra-household priorities — that require policy design, not just exhortation.
- Dropping the age threshold widens the eligible pool sharply, so guidelines on what to test, over-testing, over-diagnosis and guaranteed follow-up care become critical.
- Compared with the earlier 30-to-60 framing, this signals a shift in emphasis towards younger adults, consistent with reports of heart attacks at younger ages.
What to watch — Watch whether central or State NCD programmes and insurance packages actually lower their screening age, and whether workforce, lab and follow-up capacity is in place to absorb the extra volume.
The story does not establish the evidence base or cost of screening from 25, offers no government decision, and presents the 25% women figure as one hospital group's experience rather than national data.
Deep dive
Research brief · 8 facts · 3 dates · exam-readyThe brief
Context
Ahead of World Heart Day (September 29), Prathap C. Reddy, founder and chairman of Apollo Hospitals, called on Indians to begin preventive health screening at age 25 rather than 30, arguing that regular exercise alone is no guarantee of good health. He framed non-communicable diseases (NCDs) — heart attacks, strokes, cancers, diabetes, along with obesity and mental illness — as among India's most serious health problems. He also flagged a gender gap in prevention: only 25% of those coming for Apollo's preventive health checks are women. The remarks come amid heart attacks occurring at younger ages in India.
Key facts
- Prathap C. Reddy, founder and chairman of Apollo Hospitals, urged preventive health screening from the age of 25, speaking on Friday ahead of World Heart Day on September 29.
- Earlier recommendation was preventive health checks from age 30 to 60; the advised starting age has now been lowered to 25 and above.
- He advised that every person get completely screened at least once in their lifetime to know whether they are disease-free or predisposed to disease.
- Only 25% of those coming for Apollo's preventive health checks are women, according to Dr. Reddy.
- Non-communicable diseases cited as among India's most serious problems: heart attacks, strokes, cancers and diabetes, with obesity and mental illness also adding to the list.
- Risk factors listed for heart attacks in young people: genetic factors, smoking, stress, inactivity, lack of diet restrictions, hypertension, diabetes and family history of heart attacks.
- Dr. Reddy said heart attacks are preventable and give 'enough time and warning', making early detection and elimination of risk factors important.
- He said minimally invasive cardiac surgeries and robotic cardiac surgeries are being performed, with more private hospitals providing care and governments activating their own programmes.
Timeline
- Earlier (period not stated in the source)Preventive health checks were recommended for those aged 30 to 60.
- Friday (September 25, 2026, as per publication date)Dr. Prathap C. Reddy urges screening from age 25 and highlights that only 25% of preventive check users are women.
- September 29World Heart Day, ahead of which the appeal was made.
Who has a stake
- Young adults aged 25 and above — Newly advised target group for preventive screening; early detection could identify risk factors before heart attacks or other NCDs occur.
- Women — Form only 25% of preventive health check users though incidence of heart attacks in women is 'no less'; under-screening risks late detection.
- Apollo Hospitals — Private provider promoting preventive screening and advanced cardiac care including minimally invasive and robotic surgery.
- Healthcare professionals — doctors, nurses, paramedics — Credited with delivering excellent clinical outcomes; central to expanding preventive and cardiac care.
- Governments — Said to be activating their own programmes as cardiac treatment access expands alongside private hospitals.
- Families — Urged to prioritise the health of women who typically manage the family's health and wellbeing.
Why it matters
Non-communicable diseases are described as among India's most serious health problems, and heart attacks are increasingly occurring at younger ages — which is why the advised screening age has been pulled down from 30 to 25. Because most cardiac risk factors such as smoking, stress, inactivity, hypertension and diabetes are modifiable, early detection can convert a fatal event into a preventable one. The finding that women make up only a quarter of preventive check users points to a gender gap in India's prevention effort.
UPSC angle
Prelims pointers
- World Heart Day is observed on September 29.
- Prathap C. Reddy is the founder and chairman of Apollo Hospitals.
- Non-communicable diseases named in the story: heart attacks, strokes, cancers, diabetes, plus obesity and mental illness.
- Advised age for preventive health screening revised from 30–60 earlier to 25 and above.
- Women account for only 25% of Apollo's preventive health check patients.
- Cardiac surgery modes mentioned: minimally invasive cardiac surgery and robotic cardiac surgery.
Mains framing
India's disease burden is shifting decisively toward non-communicable diseases — heart attacks, strokes, cancers and diabetes, compounded by obesity and mental illness — and, as Dr. Prathap C. Reddy notes, cardiac events are striking at younger ages, prompting a lowering of the advised preventive screening age from 30 to 25. The causal chain is largely behavioural and metabolic: smoking, stress, physical inactivity, unrestricted diets, hypertension and diabetes, layered over genetic and family-history risk. The implication is that curative capacity alone is insufficient; Reddy himself stresses that heart attacks are preventable and give 'enough time and warning', so the policy pay-off lies in early detection and elimination of risk factors. A second implication is equity: with only 25% of preventive check-ups being availed by women despite comparable incidence of heart attacks, prevention is being distributed unequally within households. The way forward suggested by the source is threefold — normalise once-in-a-lifetime comprehensive screening from age 25, correct the assumption that exercise alone confers health by pairing it with medical consultation, and have families actively prioritise women's health, while private hospitals and government programmes together expand access to improving cardiac treatment.
Key terms
- Non-communicable diseases (NCDs)
- Non-infectious, largely lifestyle- and risk-factor-driven conditions; here heart attacks, strokes, cancers, diabetes, obesity and mental illness.
- Preventive health screening
- Medical check-up done before symptoms appear, to establish whether a person is healthy or predisposed to disease and to spot risk factors.
- World Heart Day
- Observed on September 29; the occasion for this appeal on cardiac prevention.
- Risk factor
- A trait or habit raising disease probability — e.g., smoking, stress, inactivity, hypertension, diabetes, family history of heart attacks.
- Minimally invasive cardiac surgery
- Heart surgery through smaller access routes; performed along with robotic cardiac surgery, per Dr. Reddy.
Practice questions
- Non-communicable diseases are emerging as India's dominant health challenge. Examine the role of preventive screening in addressing this burden, with reference to the lowering of the advised screening age to 25.
- Only 25% of those availing preventive health checks are women, though heart attack incidence in women is 'no less'. Discuss the causes and consequences of this gender gap in preventive healthcare.
- 'Exercise alone does not guarantee health.' Critically analyse this proposition in the context of rising cardiac events among young Indians and the modifiable risk factors involved.
Grounded only in the source report — figures and dates are the source's, not inferred.