Whichever way you look at it, men are far less healthy than women. From infancy onwards, in every age group males are more likely to die than females. Men have shorter average life expectancy and a much greater incidence of conditions such as cardiovascular disease, accidental death, suicide, alcoholism, obesity and smoking-related diseases.
The obvious question is why?
Part of the answer is a lack of awareness about the very real health issues faced by males and a reluctance to seeing a doctor about an illness or for regular medical checks.
The aim of Movember is to change this attitude, make male health fun by returning the moustache to its rightful place as a must-have fashion accessory and in the process raise awareness about male health and funds for prostate cancer and male depression. Movember is also a chance to re-ignite your status on the social stage.
The Movember participants known as Mo Bro's have the month of Movember to grow and groom their moustache and along the way raise as much moolah as possible. What to sign up? Register at the Movember website.
Whilst growing a mo' is left to the boys, Mo Sistas form a very important part of Movember, be it supporting their Mo Bros or selling tickets to various Movember events.
Check out these male health facts:
- Average life expectancy: males 75 years, females 81 years
- Up to 14 years, boys are at least TWICE as likely to die from accidental injury
- Between the ages of 15 — 24 years, males are THREE times more likely to die in car accidents and FOUR times more likely to suicide. Overall death is 2.65 times higher than females
- Between the ages of 25 — 65 years, males are FOUR times more likely to die from coronary artery disease; THREE times more likely to die in car accidents; FOUR times more likely to suicide; FOUR times more likely to die in other accidents; and TWICE as likely to die from cancer. Overall death rate is two times that of females
- At least four out of five heroin overdose deaths occur in males
- In schools 90 percent of children with documented behavioural problems are male
Male health is a major issue. For any real progress to be made, males need to change their attitude toward their health, males need to become more aware of the health risks they face, be more open about their feelings and more in tune with their bodies.
Men should find time for a proper annual check-up, not just a quick once over when at the doctors for a sprained ankle. This means a full comprehensive health-check with a GP including a medical history review, thorough physical examination, urinalysis and an open chat about specific health issues.
The aim of Movember is to change men's attitude about their health, encourage them to get annual checks and make them more aware of the very real health risks associated with being a male.
For more information on how to take part in, or support, Movember, visit the Movember website.
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