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It’s Time to Man Up! According to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) the life expectancy for men in the United States is 74.8 years, around five years less than that of women. Men are often more likely than women to participate in behavior that puts their health at risk, including smoking and excessive drinking of alcohol, and making unhealthy or risky lifestyle choices. The unhealthiest thing that men do is putting off regular checkups and medical care. A recent survey by the Cleveland Clinic showed that 65 percent of men avoid going to the doctor and 37 percent withheld information for fear of a potential diagnosis.
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How HiM Helps The goal of the Health Initiative for Men (HiM) is to encourage men to see their physician annually, and empower them to actively manage their health by being screened for various diseases that respond better to treatment if detected early. HiM promotes men’s health awareness by promoting its Men’s Health Checklist that informs men about what health screenings they should receive throughout their lives, sharing insightful health blogs and sponsoring free prostate cancer screenings.
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The History of HiM Griffin Hospital launched the Health Initiative for Men (HiM) in June 2011 as a response to data which indicated that men in the Lower Naugatuck Valley have significantly higher rates of mortality than men in Connecticut on average for both prostate cancer and colorectal cancer. Ansonia businessman Frank Michaud and his wife, Judy, established a special “Health Initiative for Men Fund” at the Valley Community Foundation to promote outreach efforts that would help inspire men to have an annual physical and raise awareness about men’s health issues, such as prostate cancer and colorectal cancer.
