Men & Doctors

Let me tell you a true story about a real man, a man’s man, who happened to be a carpenter. John Doe, lets call him John, had some back pain that had been getting progressively worse for the past six months. He had not been to see a doctor since his last football physical in college. He had never been seriously injured and had never spent a night in the hospital. He finally went to see his family doctor because he developed some blood in his urine. He never admitted the back pain to his doctor.  His family physician referred him to a urologist. John’s little problem disappeared the next day and he never went to see the urologist. His back pain was tolerable. Over the next 18 months John continued to have pains in his back but dismissed them as work related. A large man, 6’ 1” and 240 pounds- he continued his daily activity including some heavier construction projects. He continued to ignore his symptoms until the blood returned in his urine. John returned to his family physician with a complaint of low back pain and casually remarked that “oh yea and that blood is still there”.  John was convinced to see the urologist who in-turn referred him to a specialist. The specialist removed a tumor from his kidney. John is unfortunately representative of the model male patient.  His story is just a little more illustrative of how men make poor health choices.  Gentlemen we should be ashamed of ourselves!  We are supposed to be the intellectual problem solvers of our species.  When it comes to our health we are woefully inadequate compared to our female counterparts. Did you know that most family practices, chiropractors, dentists, and podiatrists see primarily women?  This is true of my practice as well. Did you know men make 135 million fewer doctor’s visits a year than women do? A survey taken in 1999 found that about 30 million men hadn’t been to a doctor for a health check-up in the previous year. About 9 million men said they hadn’t seen a doctor in five years.  Another survey found that one-third of men in America age 45 to 64 had never had their cholesterol checked. Sadly, because we neglect our health, we pay the consequences.  On average, men die seven years before most women.  The death rate for heart disease is twice as high for men as it is for women.  Lung cancer kills about 95,000 men each year, compared to 65,000 women. Men also have higher death rates from emphysema, accidents, murder, suicide, and alcohol-related conditions.

Are we really that dumb or are we just genetically predispositioned to poor health?  It’s not our genes. Unfortunately we are poorly educated consumers.  Men  know very little about their bodies, they’re too embarrassed to say so, and when they have a problem, they don’t know where to turn for help. Many men think consulting a doctor is an admission of weakness.  Any worrying about a health problem that doesn’t land them flat on their backs isn’t manly.  Would John Wayne have complained of urinary problems?  I don’t think so.  Our model man, John, probably learned from a young age to grit his teeth and bare it.  The following is a list of commonly used excuses and their possible hidden meanings borrowed from Better Homes and Gardens (probably written by a woman).

So what’s the answer?  Men need to realize that the traditional masculine role can be hazardous to their health.  Men need to see doctors as allies and become more educated about their health.  So what should we be doing and when should we be doing it? This chart should get you started.  To use the last column and last chart: assume if you are age 20 to 59 your life expectancy would be 73, if you are age 60 to 69 your life expectancy would be 76, and if you are age 70 to 79 your life expectancy would be 78. 

Dr. Kevin S. Steele, D.C.