Aug 23

Written by: Besselman and Little
8/23/2011 1:38 PM 

"If I had known I was going to live this long, I would have taken better care of myself." --Mickey Mantle

According to a recent survey by Men's Health Magazine and CNN, one-third of American men have not had a checkup in the past year.  Nine million men haven't seen a doctor in the last five years.

The consequences of not seeing a doctor can be serious.  Before age 65, men suffer 2.5 times more heart attacks than women.  By age 65, one in three men suffers from high blood pressure, a primary risk for heart attacks.  Yet men are less likely than women to have their blood pressure checked.  Below are some more facts:

• Each year, men make 150 million fewer trips to doctors than women.
• One in nine men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer, yet few will have the easy and painless tests to detect it.
• Men are at greater risk of stress-related illnesses than women, yet only 20% of the people in a typical stress-management program are men.
• Men are 30% more likely than women to have a stroke.  One out of three male strokes occur before age 65.
• Each year, over 50,000 men die of emphysema, one of the most preventable diseases.
• It has been estimated that more than 3 million men are walking around with early type II diabetes and don't know it.

Clearly, the price of denial is high.   A problem ignored is one that will become progressively worse - even deadly.  Encourage the men in your life to see a doctor regularly, which could avoid paying some unnecessary consequences.

Source: www.malehealthcenter.com