Want to be better at sports, better at sex, better in every aspect of your life? Here’s where to start.
When it comes to men’s health, you might think prevention is a four-letter word. According to an American Academy of Family Physicians survey, only 50 percent of men under the age of 45 have had a physical exam in the past two years. That could be the reason why men are 30 percent more likely than women to be hospitalized for preventable conditions, such as complications from diabetes—or why their life expectancy, on average, is five years less than women’s.
The secret that guys have yet to learn, says David Katz, M.D., director of the Prevention Research Center at Yale University School of Medicine, is that being healthy is sexy. “It doesn’t just add years to your life, it adds life to your years,” says Katz. “Being healthy means more vitality. Men who take care of themselves are better at sports, better at sex, better at work, better fathers and better husbands,” he says. In the competition of life, the healthiest man wins.
So how do we get guys back in the game to live their best and longest lives? “If you want to keep your car running, you give it an oil change. Men need maintenance, just like their car,” says Steven Kaplan, M.D., urologist and director of the Iris Cantor Men’s Health Center at New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center.
“And just as a new set of wheels needs a different set of diagnostics than a vintage roadster would, people at various ages require different kinds of healthcare and attention to details,” says Juergen Bludau, M.D., director of clinical geriatric services at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and author of Aging But Never Old. Here, your guide to what needs attention when, so you can keep your engine humming into your 60s and beyond.
Want to see how your health changes compare to those of women in your age bracket? Read Women: Welcome to Your Perfect Age to learn how aging impacts women in their 20s, 30s, 40s and beyond.
