June is Men’s Health Awareness Month, but it originally started as a week when it was introduced to Congress in 1994 and sponsored by Senator Bob Dole and Congressman Bill Richardson. President Bill Clinton signed it into law and issued a call for all American men to pay better attention to their health.
“Even with better, more accessible screening and prevention programs, we need men to recognize and adopt healthier lifestyles,” Clinton said. “No health care policy can replace the benefits American men will receive from this reform.”
The exact week every year will be the week before and leading up to Father’s Day. The idea then became an international sensation thanks to six organizations working together at the World Conference on Men’s Health in 2002. At the same time, there was a growing movement to extend it throughout the month of June while also focusing on mental health. As a result June is now known as Men’s Health Month and Men’s Mental Health Awareness Month.
Why Men’s Mental Health Needs More Attention
The statistics show why men’s health and well-being is important and should be a priority for families. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), the average life expectancy of an American man is 76.5 years, about five years less than 81.4 years for women.
As of 2023, the study concluded that the top three causes of death for men are as follows:
Heart Disease – About one in four men were affected by some form of cardiovascular disease when they died. Men are also reported to be more likely to have an early heart attack than women.
Cancer – Half of American men will be diagnosed with some form of cancer in their lifetime. About one in eight will develop prostate cancer, especially, the CDC says.
Unintentional Injuries and Complications – The third leading cause of death is unintentional injuries, which can range from something that happens in the workplace to drug use in car accidents.
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The Scary Statistics Behind Men’s Mental Health
Although mental health did not make the top three list, it has been a growing problem for several years now. Reports from different organizations including the World Health Organization (WHO), CDC, and others shed light on why this is so.
One in five men in the US experiences some form of depression or anxiety, and six million live with it every year. Unfortunately, 40% of men admit that they will not talk about this, which is believed to be one of the several reasons why 80% of the estimated 48,000 people who commit suicide in the latest confirmed data are men. Suicide is the second leading cause of death for men under the age of 44 and ranks fifth for men between 45 and 54, according to Yuna.
Of course, veterans are included in that group. By 2023, 6,398 veterans will die from suicide. 94.5% of that group were men. Surprisingly, this is down slightly from previous years, but the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) reports that on average, 17 to 18 veterans take their own lives every day.
Important Men’s Health Plans and Measures
There are many groups, organizations, and leagues that understand the importance of men’s health and are taking action. Major League Baseball and the Prostate Cancer Foundation have announced the Home Run Challenge, where every home run hit during MLB games in the month of June will lead to a donation to research. Various teams across the league are also hosting their own prostate cancer awareness events on Father’s Day weekend, including the Atlanta Braves, Detroit Tigers, and Athletics.
The NBA’s Atlanta Hawks are hosting the “Real Talk, Real Strength: Men of Color Health Summit” at State Farm Arena for the second year in a row. The event was intended to create more dialogue about mental and physical health.
Even beyond sports, groups across North America such as the Men’s Health Network (MHN) and the Canadian Men’s Health Foundation (CMHF) are focusing on Father’s Day week to directly address mental health issues.
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Connections Between Fathers, Life, and Future Generations
If the numbers alone are not enough to raise eyebrows and make men pay attention, then perhaps a holiday surrounded by all this attention would be. Whether men are fathers, stepfathers, or other family members to the children of the next generation, these issues can be passed down or discussed directly so that the boys under your influence have a greater chance of living a long and healthy life.
Personal experience and science confirm that trauma from childhood, problems related to alcohol or drugs, and mental health challenges can be an ongoing problem.
Cancer, including prostate cancer, may be linked to genetics. Children of people with Familial Hypercholesterolemia have a 50% chance of getting the same mutation themselves.
Then there are mental health issues. While the numbers show that depression alone has a 1 in 2 chance of being inherited, that number jumps from 50 to nearly 80 percent when it’s combined with anxiety.
Apart from genetics, men have a lot of influence, which means that these stories can be picked up by children like other normal habits. A child’s brain grows just as the body grows as it grows. That makes it more likely that their thoughts and thought processes will be influenced by their surroundings. That works both ways; it is possible that a child can grow up dealing with trauma and carry it with them into adulthood, or that curse can stay with the parent and give younger family members a better chance at mental health.
An example of this is Alex Eubank. Before becoming a world-renowned fitness influencer with over 2 million Instagram followers, she struggled with mental health issues in high school and adulthood. She recently shared her struggles on Instagram and credited her dad for helping her as she pursues her fitness journey.
“My father would give me things like (Bible verses) to confirm my goal and keep me talking about my faith as I began to pursue my dreams of becoming an influencer in the fitness industry.”
Eubank’s openness has led to many fans sharing their struggles, leading to more discussions about mental health. His father was simply a good father, but that good deed continued to reach many people he never met, confirming the importance of dealing with mental health instead of ignoring it.
What Men Can Do Today To Improve Their Health
The numbers may seem overwhelming, but they are not complete. Men can start taking action quickly to move in the right direction, and they don’t require a significant time commitment or financial investment, but the rewards can be real if used correctly.
Make Training Necessary
In addition to annual health screenings, the American Heart Association recommends 150 minutes (2 ½ hours) of physical activity per week can reduce the risk of heart disease by 40 percent. A combination of resistance training and cardio has been proven to be effective in treating the causes of heart disease.
Strength training is multipurpose in men’s health because it has also been shown to lead to significant, moderate to severe reductions in depression symptoms.
Data and personal testimony will confirm that whether it is body weight, barbell, dumbbells, machines, or any other form of resistance training, it has been and continues to be an excellent way to relieve stress and mental health problems that affect no one else.
Food and Sleep are Important
Training can be the most fun or the most challenging part, depending on your perspective, but men need to focus on eating and sleeping. The former may be easier to take than the latter for many men, but both are very important if changing your health fortune is a priority.
Simple choices like increasing your daily vegetable intake by just a quarter of a cup and swapping refined grains (white bread, white rice) for whole grains, while adding fatty fish (like salmon or mackerel) twice a week while keeping protein constant can make a big difference, says Harvard Health.
Sleep Well and More
Stress and anxiety are considered the main enemies of quality sleep, but Harvard experts also say that tricks such as eliminating blue light 45 minutes before bed, developing a consistent sleep schedule instead of sleeping on weekends, and prioritizing at least seven hours of sleep throughout the night can help with stress, depression, and help increase recovery from exercise.
Get Help for Mental Issues
As good as it may seem to be “tough on your own,” the truth is that we all need help, and it takes courage to admit it when mental health issues arise. Even someone as famous as NBA star Kevin Love has admitted this as part of his journey. After a public panic attack during the game, Uthando chose to go public, and it led many others to do the same.
“The truth is that we have a lot in common with what our friends and colleagues and neighbors are going through,” said Love. “Everybody is dealing with something that we don’t see.”
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Men’s Health Awareness Month Is More Than Just A Campaign
Restoring one’s health is not an overnight victory. Rather, it is the daily grind and professional monotony. However, it is a challenge that should not only be accepted but also embraced. Habits and daily executions are individual based, but the results and impact can extend beyond you to your family, friends, communities, and even the nation if you serve the country or have plans to do so.
Young men without families can build their strength by spending time and energy to be the best they can be now and better prepared to start a family in the future, while fathers, grandfathers, and other men involved with children now can serve as a compass for those young people to follow. Father’s Day can be a great start as long as the work continues beyond this month of June and into the months and years to come. For two and a half centuries now, the main goal of every generation of Americans has been to make sure that the next generation is better than they are. If that trend continues, the time for passive awareness is over. The time to act is now.
To learn more about Men’s Health Month, visit www.menshealthmonth.org. For help with mental health issues, call 988 or go to 988lifeline.org.
