Top killers of men and how to prevent them

Regular medical checks are helpfulMen are prone to many health problems that cut life short. Muda Oyeniran, in this article, writes about these killer diseases of men and how they can be prevented.

"MEN are generally adventurous. They have the tendency to engage in risky behaviours that may send them to their early graves. Many of them smoke, drink alcohol, engage in indiscriminate sexual escapades, and drive carelessly. This explains why we have more widows than widowers" so says a Clinical Psychologist, Mr. Marcellinus Nwaogu.

According to experts, socially-sanctioned “male” behaviour may predispose men to premature death. Statistics from the United States–based Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that men are more likely to smoke, drink, use illicit drugs and engage in casual sex than are women – all of which can increase their risk of serious diseases. It is also believed that males were more likely to take risks and behave aggressively which may partly explain why they have a higher risk of dying from accidents, suicide and homicide.

Medical experts also assumed that inherited traits and male sex hormones which affected characteristics such as body fat distribution might make men have shorter life span than women do. According to them, men are more likely to accumulate fat around the abdomen (apple-shaped obesity) which is associated with an increased risk of heart disease, diabetes, cancer and stroke while women, on the other hand, are more likely to put on extra weight around the hips (pear-shaped obesity) which is not linked as closely to potentially fatal conditions.

A 2003 statistics by CDC showed 10 leading killers of American men which were: heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes, kidney, disease, influenza and pneumonia, unintentional injuries, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), influenza and pneumonia, Alzheimer’s disease and suicide.

According to the CDC, in 2003, over a million American men died of heart disease or one of the nine other leading causes of death accounting for nearly 80 percent of death.

The top killers also vary somewhat among men from different ethnic groups. Black men, whose life expectancy is shorter than that of men from other races, are said to be at higher risk of death by homicide and AIDS, American and Indian men are more likely to die of chronic liver disease and cirrhosis. More white men die of Alzheimer’s disease than do men from other groups. In men of Asian or pacific Island descent, the top two killers are the same as for men of other ethnic groups, but their order is reversed – they are more likely to die of cancer than of heart disease. Hispanic men are at higher risk of death by accidental injury, at least partly because the population of Hispanic men is younger than average.

The good news however is that the ten leading causes of men’s death are preventable. Below are the experts’ advices on how to prevent the killers:

Heart disease
According to the American Heart Association, over 410,000 men died of cardiovascular disease in 2003. Because men usually develop heart disease 10 to 15 years earlier than women do, they are more likely to die of it in the prime of life. About one-fourth of all heart-disease-related deaths occur in men aged 35 to 65.

Men can reduce the risk of heart disease by making healthier lifestyle choices and getting appropriate treatment for other conditions that can increase risk of coronary artery disease, such as high cholesterol, diabetes and high blood pressure.

Some preventive measures men can take include: avoiding smoke or use of other tobacco products; eating a varied diet rich in fruits and vegetables and avoiding high-fat foods; maintaining a healthy weight and getting at least 30 minutes of exercise most days of the week.

Cancer
In 2003, the CDC recorded nearly 288,000 men who died of cancer with 89,964 men dying of lung cancer. While disclosing that 90 percent of the lung cancer cases, the CDC noted that prostrate cancer and colorectal cancer were the second and third leading causes of cancer death in men.

Men could guard against cancer by avoiding smoke or use of other tobacco products; eating a varied diet rich in fruits and vegetables and avoiding high-fat foods; maintaining a healthy weight; getting at least 30 minutes of exercise most days of the week; limiting exposure to sun and use of sunscreen; drinking alcohol in moderation (if at all); take steps to reduce exposure to cancer-causing substances (carcinogens) both in the home and work place and having regular preventive health screenings.

Unintentional injuries
Accidents killed 70,532 men in 2003, according to CDC with motor vehicle crashes being the leading cause. Also workplace accidents, which include poisonings, falls and drowning are a significant cause of the fatal injury to men.

In order to reduce the chances of a fatal car crash; use your seat belt every time you drive, don’t exceed speed limits, don’t drive after drinking alcohol and don’t drive while sleepy or under the influence of drugs.

Stroke
Although men cannot control some stroke risk factors such as family history, age and race, they can control the leading cause, which is high blood pressure as well as contributing factors such as smoking and diabetes.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
According to the American Lung Association, 60,714 men died of COPD, a group of chronic lung conditions that includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis. It is strongly associated with lung cancer, the leading cause of cancer deaths among men. The main cause is smoking. Men who smoke are 12 times as likely to die of COPD as are men who have never smoked. To prevent COPD, men should not smoke; should avoid second hand smoke (that is, should not inhale smoke from smokers) and minimise exposure to workplace chemicals.

Diabetes
The American Heart Association reports that in 2004, 35,000 men died of diabetes. Excess body fat, especially around the middle, is an important risk factor for diabetes. About 80 per cent of people who have the disease are overweight or obese. An estimated one-third of men with the most common form of diabetes don’t know they have it until they develop complications such as impotence (erectile dysfunction), nerve damage causing pain or loss of sensation in the hands or feet, vision loss or kidney disease.

Some preventive measures to be taken include maintenance of a healthy weight; eating a varied diet, rich in fruits vegetables and low-fat foods; getting at least 30 minutes of exercise most days of the week and getting blood sugar level checked periodically.

Influenza and pneumonia
These are lung infections that are especially life-threatening to people whose lungs have already been damaged by COPD, asthma or smoking. The risk of death from pneumonia or influenza is also higher among people with heart disease, diabetes or a weakened immune system due to AIDS or immunosuppressive drugs. Men can reduce the risk of complications and death from pneumonia and influenza by getting immunised.

Kidney disease
Control of diabetes and high blood pressure can prevent or slow the progression of kidney disease. Another cause of kidney failure is overuse of medications such as aspirin and ibuprofen that are toxic to the kidneys. Some preventive measures that can be taken include: drinking plenty of fluids; exercising regularly; maintaining proper body weight; avoid smoking; getting regular checks for diabetes and high blood pressure and limit the use of over-the-counter pain relievers.