Councils across England have called on the government to develop a national men's health strategy after it emerged there was a huge gap in life expectancy between men living in more affluent and deprived areas.
The Local Government Association (LGA) said the issue “should be recognised as a national problem”, and its report, Men's Health: Men's Lives in Local Communities, found that men in deprived areas live up to 10 years less than their more affluent counterparts, with smoking and excessive drinking contributing to the difference.
David Fothergill, chair of the LGA's community wellbeing committee, said: “Men in England are facing a silent health crisis, with higher rates of cancer, heart disease, type 2 diabetes and suicide and dying almost four years earlier than women.”
“Significant inequalities mean that men in poorer areas live nearly a decade less than their more affluent peers.”
Mr Fothergill said some local authority programmes were “making progress” but a men's health strategy was needed.
The LGA also called for local funding for suicide prevention to be restored. In England and Wales, suicide is the leading cause of death among men aged 20 to 34, and suicide rates are generally three times higher in men than in women.
£57 million of funding to provide local authorities with support for people at risk of suicide ended in March.
Schemes already in place include Gateshead Council's 'Man v Fat' programme, which uses football to help overweight men improve their health, and Islington Council's £2.5m initiative to boost mental health support for young black men.
“We are calling for men's health to be recognised as a national issue and for the Government to implement a men's health strategy,” Mr Fothergill said. “Innovative local authority-led initiatives are making progress but national action is needed to close the gap in life expectancy.”
In 2022, the government unveiled a 10-year women's health strategy aimed at improving the way the health system interacts with women and girls.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said: “Unacceptable health inequalities exist across the UK and we are determined to tackle this issue so that people can live longer, happier, healthier lives.”
“The NHS is failing. We will fix it and shift the focus from treating disease to preventing it.”
“Our 10-year health plan will outline how we can ensure men get the support and targeted interventions they need.”
“Our plans to reduce obesity, improve cancer survival and strengthen mental health services will also help tackle the main causes of poor health in men.”
The LGA's call echoes that of the charity Movember, which published a report in July warning that more than 133,000 men die prematurely in the UK every year – the equivalent of 15 people every hour. It also says two in five men die prematurely before the age of 75, many of them from entirely avoidable health conditions.
The charity argued that leading causes of death such as lung cancer and heart disease could be prevented by quitting smoking, cutting down on alcohol consumption, eating a healthy diet and undergoing health checks and other medical checks.
In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123 or by email at [email protected] or [email protected]. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat at 988lifeline.org or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counsellor. In Australia, crisis support service Lifeline can be reached on 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org.
