Men – What Are We to Do with You?
Posted on June 11, 2013
Have you seen the billboards? The ones that declare: “This year, thousands of men will die from stubbornness.” The purpose of these billboards is to encourage men to learn about the preventive medical care they need. The widely accepted assumption is that men are lax about seeing doctors and taking care of their health. Guess what? It’s true!
According to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (www.ahrq.gov)
- Men are 24% less likely than women to have visited a doctor within the past year and are 22% more likely to have neglected their cholesterol tests.
- Men are 28% more likely than women to be hospitalized for congestive heart failure.
- Men are 32% more likely than women to be hospitalized for long-term complications of diabetes and are more than twice as likely as women to have a leg or foot amputated due to complications related to diabetes.
- Men are 24% more likely than women to be hospitalized for pneumonia that could have been prevented by getting an immunization.
We all have lived in a state of denial at one time or another. It can be scary to find out what that bump is, or where that cough came from, or even why you’re having trouble opening jars when it used to be so easy. Hardly anyone wants to admit there could be a problem and it might need treatment.
Prevention is even harder to include among the must-dos for men. Got chest pain? Sure, call 911. But finding out whether your blood pressure numbers are high, or your cholesterol levels are out-of-range, or admitting that smoking can kill you means you might have to do something about it when it is not an emergency situation.
That’s why June is Men’s Health Month! The purpose of Men’s Health Month is to heighten awareness of preventable health problems and encourage early detection and treatment of disease among men and boys. This month gives health care providers, public policy makers, the media, and individuals an opportunity to encourage men and boys to seek regular medical advice and early treatment for disease and injury.
The Men’s Health Network of Massachusetts is a very active organization whose goals are:
- To reduce premature death among men
- To increase physical and mental health of men so that they can live fuller and happier lives
- To significantly reduce the cycles of violence and addiction that afflict many men
- To energize government involvement in men’s health activities and to encourage utilization of existing government health networks to increase the health and well-being of men
- To encourage women to expand their traditional roles as family health care leaders and activists for enhancement of health care services
To find out more information and about how you can become involved, please visit: http://www.menshealthnetwork.org/machapter.
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