Whenever I listen to talk of ‘neglected health’, the first word I so often hear is “women”. “It’s women whose health is secondary.” Or something of the sort. And so follows stories of blank text books, mislabelled diagrams, or biased research. A monstrosity of medical ignorance, with sexist moustache twirling male doctors brushing the whole mess under the rug. The conversation often spirals outward, louder and more contrived. At some point, someone will inevitably mention crash test dummies, maybe seat belts, or recommend me Laura Bate’s book. No thanks. I’ll pass. Because this data that illuminates all of this, is freely and openly available, it’s extremely extensive and anyone can read it. And it paints a different story; a more positive (but still imperfect) one for women. A story that lifts women out of the fantastical manacles of patriarchal oppression, and tells a story of empowerment, progress, and painstaking research for women. Sadly, for American men, the story is a little different. No longer the favourite child, their health is what appears to be neglected and ignored. The funding? Well it’s thin on the ground, as is the research, and the academic will. It’s bad. Perhaps we should contact the Office for Men’s Health to protest? Except we can't, because it doesn’t exist. Meanwhile, America stands back as its men continue to die in record numbers. Dying at 1.4 times the rate as women, and leading in nine of the top ten causes of death. And still silence. So what are we waiting for, the ‘full house’ ten out of ten? How much worse can it get? When will change arrive, and when will reasonable discussion begin? When will we close the fairytale book, snap out of the slogans, push past the hashtags, and look at the world right in front of us. When will we save our men and our boys? Source Congress Men’s health in the United States: a national health paradox  NIH Funding  WHO  Images by Gradienta, Jason Leung and the National Cancer Institute from Unsplash. #malehealth #menshealth #mensheathawareness

2023-01-19