The Factors That Affect Men’s Health and Turning Your Health Around

Prioritise your health every day

Your health is something that often gets undermedicated and taken for granted by many of us, including myself. But, unfortunately, the “head in the sand” attitude of men towards their often suboptimal lifestyle means that a lack of discipline in the areas of a healthy diet, exercise, alcohol consumption and work/life balance leads to less favourable health outcomes, writes Arlie Woman’s Clinic.

I have a series of questions to ask yourself, and you will likely say yes to one of these questions;

Maybe you have answered no to all of these questions. Great, good on you. It is time for us to learn about the FACTS and statistics surrounding Men’s Mental Health if we have answered yes.

Reading about these statistics sent a shiver down my spine of how men are not medicating properly, and we constantly ignore the signs we should seek help. But, if we can change just one person’s thoughts or perspective on mental health in this article, then we have made massive inroads.

With all this in mind, what can we do to change these stats and our attitude to our health?

You can probably guess the first topic up here. It would be rude not to have it discussed first, right? ;)

Exercise is good for your body and great for your mind.

Whatever it may be, make an effort to be active daily. Going for a short walk changes everything, according to Friedrich (2012). She reports that sitting for too long increases the risk of dying prematurely regardless of whether you exercise or more at the gym each day." can it be changed to "Whatever it may be, make an effort to be active daily. Going for a short walk changes everything, according to a study completed by the American Cancer Society. They found that sitting for too long increases the risk of dying prematurely regardless of whether you exercise or more at the gym each day.

Eat well to feel well.

These tips might sound insignificant, but I’m sure there is something you can do better if you look closely at your diet.

Diets should include a healthy balance of complex carbohydrates, protein and fats. All of these should be achieved from as natural sources as possible. For example, diets rich in vegetables and fruits can lower blood pressure, reduce the risk of heart disease and stoke prevent some types of cancer, lower risk of eye and digestive problems, and have a positive effect upon blood sugar, which can help keep appetite in check (Harvard School of Public Health).

An important takeaway for me is to change up your fruits and vegetables weekly. Try not to stick to the same fruits and vegetables every week, as you miss out on all the different nutrients on offer.

Then comes health supplements from Bulk Nutrients. Even eating a diet rich in fruit and veggies, we can still miss many vital ingredients. This is where supplementation comes in. Shop our extensive range here, and remember to use the discount code Diss5 to save $ off your order.

Keep an eye on your waistline.

Something all of us are guilty of is not tracking our progress in the gym, and one of those is checking our waistline, not just to see if we are losing weight or not. Measuring your weight line can indicate whether you are at risk of obesity-related chronic diseases by measuring your waist circumference. See the chart below for at-risk measurements provided by the Australian Government Department of Health (2020)

Generally, the larger your waist circumference, the higher your risk of developing chronic diseases are. But, if you are over these numbers, don’t panic. There is help available! Chat to your GP or seek a local nutritionist to find out more information and get help on where to start.

Kill your bad habits! It’s not cool to smoke.

I still don’t understand why people smoke these days. With all the education out there on how harmful it is and how many years it takes off your life seriously! Not to mention the massive financial cost it is to smoke! So please do yourself a favour and seek help to quit.

A widespread misconception is that it is cool to smoke. As a result, young teenagers and adults get seduced by their peers to engage in this activity. Don’t let others control you and, more importantly, your health!

“Oh, but I use it as a coping mechanism for stress.”

When you smoke, nicotine travels to your brain quickly, often in under 10 seconds. It then causes your brain to release adrenaline, which triggers your body’s natural ‘fight or flight response – your heart rate and blood pressure increase, and blood flow to your heart slows down. As a result, you might also experience rapid, shallow breathing and the feeling of a racing heartbeat. All of these reactions can cause feelings of stress and anxiety and make existing stress and anxiety worse. So, if you’re having a smoke to wind down at the end of the week, maybe it's time to rethink your relaxing methods.

To empathise with how bad smoking really is, every cigarette takes 11 minutes out of your life. That is a lot for an occasional smoker having just one here and there. I don’t need to go into the other side effects but remember you are smoking rat poison and the materials made from the road outside your house. Go figure.

Let’s talk about blood and what are blood pressure means to our health

In America, for example, one in three people suffer from high blood pressure. This is a dangerous condition that can lead to heart disease or strokes. More alarmingly, 54% of people don’t have their condition under control. It is recommended that if you have high blood pressure, you monitor this from home.

So I don’t have high blood pressure, I can ignore this issue? Absolutely not. If you are between the ages of 18 to 40, it is recommended that you should get tested every 3 to 5 years. A test at the doctor only takes a matter of minutes, and it can save you a lot of further issues and heartache down the track!

Your blood pressure is a measure of two numbers that appear as one over the other. These measure two types of pressure including;

With this in mind, what is the ideal range you should be in?

If your blood pressure is 140/90 or more, then you have high blood pressure. Normal blood pressure sits around 120/80 or lower.

If you just skipped through this whole section because it’s boring, leaving high blood pressure untreated can have serious and even life-threatening consequences. So make sure you book yourself in because, more than likely, it’s been a long time since you last had it tested!

How can we improve our mental health?

So with all these points in mind in this blog, how can we reduce these rates of suicide and help out a mate?

I think a big one for me has a purpose. Imagine not wanting to wake up every morning but also not wanting to go to sleep at night. No will to work, no excitement to spend, no friends company to enjoy, and no reason to continue living. A blank mind with nothing to think about. The lack of emotions, either positive or negative. Nothing to look forward to. This all is part of a life living with depression. No one should have to face this, but unfortunately, this is a reality for many of us, but it doesn’t have to be this way!

So what gives us purpose in life?

Australian Men’s Health Forum (2020) discusses the key ways to keep your mental health in good shape.

It’s never too late or early to reach out for help. We all in this together. We are all one big family. Full of dreams. Education #KNOWYOURMANFACTS.