Every day it seems we hear about a new way to shave time off our busy days. Drive-thru coffee. Banking by phone. DVRing shows to skip through commercials. Self-checkout groceries. Email exchanges in place of real-time meetings. And usually I'm a fan. Added bonus: These things often let me avoid socializing.

But when I heard a new study about how I can save yet another hour or two a year by skipping my annual doctor's visit, even I had to draw the line.

A latest study—published in the Cochrane Library from The Cochrane Collaboration—says those routine checkups don't actually matter—they don't reduce the risk of dying from serious illnesses like cancer and heart disease. Researchers even say there are potential negative implications, for example diagnosis and treatment of conditions that might never have led to any symptoms of disease or shortened life.