Men's Health Week

The National Men’s Health Week runs from the 10^th to 16^th June and this year’s  themed week aims to tackle stigma in men’s mental health and promote mental well-being and help- seeking in men.   

The state of male health in the UK needs seriously addressing.  These following statistics are provided by the Men’s Health Forum (www.menshealthforum.org.uk):

• ·         Men visit the GP 20% less than women
• ·         Almost 100,000 men are dying prematurely (before 75 years) each year compared to about 66,000 women. 22% of men die before the age of 45
• ·         42% of men still die before the age of 75
• ·         Men are 70 per cent more likely than women to die from cancers common to both sexes and 60 per cent more likely to get these forms of the disease. 
• ·         76% of suicides are male
• ·         73% of adults who ‘go missing’ are male
• ·         On average in the UK, a man’s life expectancy is 7.5 years shorter than women.

As men, we don’t tend to seek any medical advice if we’re feeling unwell or down.  We put on a brave face and a stiff upper-lip.  We don’t cry or show our pain, especially to those closest to us.   We may be feeling ill, but in order not to cause worry for anyone else, we downplay how poorly we feel.   Sometimes, this leads to us being labelled as suffering from ‘Man Flu.’    If we have a bad health day, we may decide to ‘give it a day or two’ to see how we feel.  Even then, we don’t tend to seek medical guidance but readjust to coping with the pain.

It’s been proven again and again that early intervention is vital in the battle to cure and treat illness and disease.  Don’t jibe about your partner suffering ‘Man Flu’ but rather encourage him to see his Doctor.  My fellow men if you’re feeling off-colour, don’t feel that you will be wasting your GP’s time by making an appointment.  It’s always best to be certain and play safe rather than ignore the problem hoping that it disappears (because it never will).  Stay and keep healthy.