Taking care of both men and women is fundamental to our practice at The Bennelong Medical Clinic. While the health requirements of men and women overlap a great deal, the differences between the two sexes require separate skillsets and attention.
The health and wellbeing of the men who visit our clinic comprises many things, both mental and physical, both of which feed into and affect each other. Therefore, an understanding of each of these domains is necessary to have a holistic view of men’s health.
In honour of Men’s Health Week, let’s discuss some common physical and mental health concerns, where they overlap, and why you should always remember to visit your doctor for a health check-up.
Physical
Physical health, regardless of one’s sex, is a vital contributor to your overall health and has significant influence on one’s mental state as well. In fact, a recent study conducted by the World Health Organisation found that a sedentary individual can reduce his or her risk of suffering from depression by simply exercising 3 times a week.
However, because of the differences between men and women in terms of lifestyle and biology as well as social factors, men’s physical health problems manifest in a rather different constellation to that of women. From men requiring prostate checks to heart disease – some health problems are uniquely or disproportionately represented in the male population.
Mental
Psychological pressures certainly impact the lives of both sexes, however it is more or less agreed upon that men find it more difficult to talk about these problems relative to their female counterparts. And this is why mental health issues in men are often unresolved and can fester and deteriorate further.
Some common mental health issues affecting men include stress, loneliness, depression and anxiety. All of which call for the attention of a professional – psychological, psychiatric or otherwise.
Mental and physical
Science has long been aware of the inextricable link between mental and physical health, however we are becoming more and more aware of exactly what is linked and why. These developments sometimes make perfect sense, or they can much less obvious exactly how one’s physical condition is affecting one’s mental state, and vice versa.
Correlations between physical and mental health are being strengthened all the time. According to research conducted by the World Health Organisation:
- Patients with type II diabetes are twice as likely to experience depression as the general population.
- Patients suffering from mental illness are twice as likely to smoke cigarettes as other people.
- Up to 50 percent of cancer patients suffer from a mental illness, especially depression and anxiety, and treating symptoms of depression in cancer patients may improve survival time.
- In patients who are depressed, the risk of having a heart attack is more than twice as high as in the general population.
- Treating the symptoms of depression after a heart attack has been shown to lower both mortality and re-hospitalisation rates.
Visit your doctor
Here at The Bennelong Medical Clinic, we encourage all our male patients to have regular checks to help initiate preventative strategies. Our experienced team of healthcare professionals can help monitor your weight, blood pressure, and level of cholesterol and assess how these may be affecting your life more broadly.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out and book an appointment today.