June is Men’s Health Month and we have received many requests to discuss natural approaches to men’s health, including natural remedies for prostate health and impotency, so we’ve put together a 3 part series that will be devoted to this important, but seldom discussed topic.
Men’s Health Issues
When compared to women, men have a shorter life span and also have a higher death rate for each of the top 10 leading causes of death. In the Men’s Health Act of 2003, Congress reported that the life expectancy gap between men and women has increased from one year in 1920 to almost six years in 2001. There are many suspected reasons for this, including diet, attention to health and willingness to take supplements.
According to the National Cancer Institute (NCI) men only eat about four-and-a-half servings of fruits and vegetables a day on average and only 4% of men say they eat the nine servings of fruits and vegetables a day recommended as part of an active lifestyle. In addition, men are significantly less likely than women to recognize the health benefits of fruits and vegetables.
Once more, men don’t usually pay attention to their health until something is very wrong. How many times have you seen a man cringing in pain, agony on his face, only to tell you that ‘it’s nothing’ or ‘it’ll go away, just give me a few minutes’? For whatever reason, we just don’t seem to be as ‘in-touch’ with our bodies as women, and we are paying a price for it.
The supplement industry also struggles with men’s health. Women’s health care products are well understood and well marketed; after all, women make 85% of the buying decisions in most households – of course the supplement industry is going to focus on them. But the real challenge is getting the male consumer to understand the direct health benefit of a product and how easy it is to maintain his health.
This three part series will tackle two of the most important areas of concern for men: prostate health and sexual function. Part 2 will cover how to improve prostate health and Part 3 will focus on a man’s sexual health.
