June is Men's Health Month

Posted by Carolyn Martin on June 8th, 2016 Posted in: Health Literacy, Health Observances

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While attending the Children’s Author luncheon at the Public Library Association conference in Denver this past April I couldn’t help but take note that Sherman Alexie began his talk by talking about a medical condition. The focus of his talk was not about medicine and medical care but he did focus several minutes  humorously recounting his medical experience regarding the benign brain tumor that was removed. He involved the men in the audience by noting that few men take the initiative to seek preventative health care, including himself, because every time they go they receive a diagnosis. So why would you go?!

Alexie’s logic may be questionable but is is not an unusual perception by many men.  Men tend to live unhealthier lives compared to women. They tend to drink and smoke more, take greater risks, and tend to delay or just not seek medical care such as regular checkups, health screening, or treatment. And, if you are a man of a racial or ethnic minority, your health is trailing behind even more than the general population.

Though it may seem overstated, taking some simple steps can be taken towards better health.  Take it slow by just taking one small act to improve your health.

• Park the car further away. You won’t waste any more time than circling the parking lot looking for a closer spot
• Smoke one less cigarette a day or a week
• Add one vegetable a day to one of your meals
• Make an appointment for a check-up a few weeks out so that it fits into your schedule better
• Wear a helmet while biking

For more information about how to improve men’s health this month an:

• MedlinePlus Men’s Health topic page https://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/menshealth.html
• AHRQ’s Healthy Men http://www.ahrq.gov/patients-consumers/patient-involvement/healthy-men/index.html
• Men’s Health at the CDC http://www.cdc.gov/Features/MensHealthAtCDC/
• Office of Minority Health http://www.minorityhealth.hhs.gov/omh/content.aspx?ID=10238