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June 05, 2024

Men's Health Checks toolkit released for Men's Health Week

Fifty men in Australia die each day from preventable causes. That’s around 18,000 men a year.

Which is why the Australian Men’s Health Forum has chosen to highlight the importance of health checks as a practical way to reduce the number of men dying too young.

The new Know Your Man Facts toolkit, ‘7 Men’s Health Checks to Get Before You Die,’ was developed for Men’s Health Week but can be used year-round wherever men gather.

It comes with an extensive PowerPoint presentation and speaker notes. You don’t have to be an expert to give a Know Your Man Facts Talk; just the willingness to stand up and talk.

You could be saving lives.

The key message in the Men’s Health Checks toolkit is for men, young and old, to understand what health checks are relevant to them and to keep track of key health numbers throughout their lives.

These are:

  • Body Mass Index
  • Blood Pressure
  • Cholesterol
  • Blood Sugar

For example, if you’ve got high blood pressure, you’re at increased risk of getting heart disease, stroke, and even erectile dysfunction. If your parents had an illness, you might be at higher risk of developing the same condition.

The Men’s Health Checks toolkit asks men to consider what checks are relevant for them and outlines common checks to have at different life stages.

It also refutes the commonly held narrative that “men don’t talk”, “men don’t get help”, and “men don’t take care of their health”.

On average, more women than men get health checks, notably because universal screening is offered to four times more women than men (for breast, cervical and bowel cancer).

But when men have an opportunity to get screened, they make the most of it. For example, half of the people who get Heart Health Checks at their GPs are men.

Read: Shane Warne's Legacy empowers men to get health checks (AMHF)

Read: Why sports fan health checks are working for men

As we give men fewer chances to get health checks than women,  men need to be proactive and get checked.

A key message for Men’s Health Week, and every other week of the year, is for men to make an appointment with their GP and get checked.

The KYMF toolkit suggests 7 Men’s Health Checks to get (before you die), which include mental health checks and harmful habits that compromise health.

DOWNLOAD the free Men's Health Checks Toolkit 

The toolkit includes an infographic that can be printed out and 10 Know Your Man Facts that can be shared with friends, family, work colleagues, and on social networks.

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