UK will have men's health strategy, government says

The UK government has announced plans for a men's health strategy.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting said it would help tackle some of the "biggest issues affecting men of all ages".

This may include mental health and suicide prevention, heart disease and prostate cancer.

The strategy is expected to be published next year.

'Biggest killer'

Streeting discussed the plans at a men’s health summit, hosted by Arsenal and the Premier League, with charity Movember.

"It can be hard to be a young man in today’s society, particularly for boys from backgrounds like mine," he said.

"We’re seeing mental ill health on the rise and the shocking fact that suicide is the biggest killer for men under the age of 50.

"Preventable killers like heart disease and prostate cancer are being caught far too late."

Men die nearly four years earlier than women, on average, and are disproportionally affected by a number of conditions, including heart disease and type 2 diabetes, according to the government.

They are also less likely to seek help for mental-health issues.

Streeting also highlighted social-media pressures, saying men faced similar issues to women around their self-esteem and body image and he would not "shy away" from the need to focus on men’s health.

"Nothing frustrates me more than when men’s health and women’s health are somehow pitted in opposition to each other, as if by focusing on a men’s health strategy we are in any way detracting from the brilliant work that successive governments have been doing on women’s health and actually much more work we need to do," he added.

'Ripple through'

The government will open a call for evidence in the coming months - inviting organisations to give their views on what more should be done to improve men's health.

Men are also being encouraged to share their views on how to make the NHS "fit for the future" on the website  Change NHS .

Movember chief executive Michelle Terry said: "When we improve men’s health, we know that the benefits can ripple through families, communities, societies and the economy.

"This will transform the lives of men but also their wives, mothers, sisters, partners, mates, neighbours, children, teachers and doctors."

The UK's women's health strategy, published in 2022, under the Conservative government, says: "Although women in the UK on average live longer than men, women spend a significantly greater proportion of their lives in ill health and disability when compared with men.

"Not enough focus is placed on women-specific issues like miscarriage or menopause, and women are under-represented when it comes to important clinical trials."