Men's Health: Why It's Important to Overcome Fears and Stereotypes

The ideal man never gets sick.

Because health (especially physical health) is an essential attribute of masculinity.

Consequently, a real man is chronically healthy—even in the face of harsh working conditions, an unfavorable climate, fatigue, stress, lack of sleep, vitamin deficiency, poor genetics, and the abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and caffeine.

A real man ends up at the doctor's in only two situations: when an axe in his back makes it hard to sit, and when he's brought to the morgue after suffering a heart attack at age forty-five.

A real man looks down on those wimps who admit to being sick. What a wimp! He’s thirty-seven and five! As if that’s getting in anyone’s way!

Go for a routine checkup once a year? Only wimps and hypochondriacs do that! The only excuse for this pointless exercise is the law. But even then, once he’s in the doctor’s office, a real man keeps insisting he’s as healthy as an ox.

You just need to stop drinking a month before your medical exam.

All these stereotypes are just as absurd as they are persistent.

And they do indeed predominate in society.

Men only go to the doctor as a last resort and don't tell anyone about it. That a person has serious problems with health...it usually becomes clear when he suddenly quits drinking or smoking.

Among the people close to me, there was one who carefully and regularly kept track of his health Only my paternal grandfather. Apparently, he had a serious health scare around the age of 35. Since then, my grandfather has hardly drunk any alcohol, watched his diet, exercised regularly, and strictly followed all his doctors’ orders.

Because of that, the villagers made fun of him.

In the end, the old man outlived all his fellow villagers, including the strongest, most resilient, and most daring among them.

Because health (just like sex) is something you have to work on.

And men's health is no different here from any other—whether it's children's or women's health.

The cold, hard statistics reveal how we view ourselves. Women live longer than men—by five years on average worldwide. And, interestingly, there is no country in the world where men, on average, live longer.

In Belarus, this difference is even more dramatic - about 10 years! 

And somehow I doubt that anyone but ourselves is to blame for this.

We don't take care of ourselves. But we really should!

You need to see doctors—regularly and different ones.

So, when was the last time you saw a urologist?

I understand, the question is with a catch. Those who have never been there will not understand who we are talking about. And those who were, will not voluntarily go a second time. A urologist is like jumping with a parachute. Only the first time is not scary. 

And once you realize what this specialist is capable of doing to you, you really don't want to go see him.

But, then again, it has to be done.

Did you know that male fertility has halved over the past 50 years? And no one knows for sure why. Whether it’s environmental pollution, a sedentary lifestyle, or smartphones—something is damaging sperm.

Some people might actually be happy about being infertile, but certainly not those who ever plan to have children.

The human body is genetically designed to last 38 years. Once this "warranty period" expires, our bodies begin to slowly fall apart.

One thing hurts, then another. Sometimes my neck seizes up, sometimes my knee aches.

As Semyon Altov joked, Even if you slept at home all night, in the morning you look like you've been drinking, smoking, and letting yourself go..

I won't be able to travel while I'm still young.

From now on, I'll have to keep an eye on my health and diet and lead as puritanical a lifestyle as possible.

Because that's the only way to live a long life.

But I want to live a long life.

I'm really curious to see how this all turns out.