Update on Men’s Health Week 2013 – 10-16th June

Tackling stigma in men’s mental health and helping men seek help

Men and women experience mental health problems in roughly equal numbers, yet men are much less likely to be diagnosed and treated for it. The consequences can be fatal – the Men’s Health Forum has long highlighted that 3 in 4 suicides are by men and that 73% of people who go missing are men.

Organised by the Men’s Health Forum, a charity, Men’s Health Week will be relevant to men and teenage boys, their families and health professionals and organisations.

To men we will say: You only live once so talk to someone, talk to us.

We will encourage men to take their mental well-being seriously and to seek help before it’s too late. As well as working with local event organisers, national news media and through social media we will publicly launch the Men’s Health Forum’s new website for men, manMOT.co.uk, in Men’s Health Week.

For health professionals and organisations we say: Enable men to talk.
• In the UK, over 4500 men kill themselves each year. That number is rising. Men are more than three times more likely than women to take their own lives.
• The World Health Organisation (WHO) reports depression is the leading cause of disability worldwide.
• Many men are reluctant to talk about their feelings or to seek help. Women are more likely to be treated for a mental health problem; men are more likely to abuse alcohol and drugs.
• Treat men encouragingly when they do attend primary care and try to raise concerns about their mental health. Outreach services might also help.
• Enable men to talk. The Men’s Health Forum runs the manMOT.co.uk services and produces publications.

Martin Tod, chief executive of the Men’s Health Forum said:
“Suicide is the unspoken killer taking the lives of far too many men’s lives. Many men seek solace in drink or isolation. We have to find ways to make it easier for men to talk about their health before it’s too late.”

“Working with local partners, Men’s Health Week will see events take place around the country ensuring that men can talk to someone face to face and online.”

For men’s health information and to speak to a doctor for advice, men can visit www.manmot.co.uk.

Health professionals can find out more and support Men's Health Week at www.menshealthforum.org.uk.

ENDS

Notes:
• The Men’s Health Forum (MHF), a charity, provides an independent and authoritative voice for male health in England and Wales and tackles the issues and inequalities affecting the health and well-being of men and boys.
• Premature death mainly affects men. 42% of men die prematurely (before the age of 75) compared to 26% of women. 21% of men aged 16-64 die from all causes compared to 12% of women.
• Men use the range of primary care services far less than women and take longer to present and get a diagnosis. In Great Britain, men visit their GP 20% less than women and are less likely to use services such as weight management and smoking cessation.
• The MHF is online at:
www.menshealthforum.org.uk for health professionals and policy makers, and www.malehealth.co.uk for fast, free, independent health info from the Men’s Health Forum.
@menshealthforum for updates on our work.