The British Liver Trust welcomed today’s publication of the first ever Men’s Health Strategy. The Trust is delighted that after sustained campaigning, this has included an announcement of investment to tackle the alcohol harm driving health inequalities and liver disease and also confirmation that the Government will raise awareness, address stigma and improve early detection.
The Strategy has been published on International Men’s Day and dovetails with Movember. It aims to tackle men’s mental health challenges, improve physical health and reduce inequalities so men and boys get on and live longer, healthier lives.
The Men’s Health Strategy highlights that more than two-thirds (68%) of liver disease deaths are in men. There has been a four-fold increase in death rates from liver disease over the last 50 years. Liver disease is the only major disease group in the UK where death rates are rising and around 9 in 10 cases of liver disease are preventable. The risk of deaths from liver disease is 4 to 5 times higher in the most deprived areas compared with the least deprived.
Certain groups may also face inequalities such as gay and bisexual men, and younger men.
The Strategy confirms the Government are working with partners, including the British Liver Trust, to raise awareness and address stigma related to increasing and higher-risk levels of alcohol use, obesity and viral hepatitis. It also confirms its commitment to improve early detection of liver disease and liver cancer case finding – through the community liver health checks programme.
Critically around 77% (6,400) of alcohol-specific deaths in England are from alcohol-related liver disease, which occur at double the rate for men as for women. In England, in the past 20 years, the annual number of premature deaths from alcohol-related liver disease has increased by 61.3% and rates have increased by 35.9% – the highest on record.
Critically the Strategy announces an additional £200,000 this year to trial new brief interventions to target the rise in cocaine and alcohol-related CVD deaths, particularly among older men. The pilots will be run in acute hospital alcohol care teams.
Pamela Healy OBE, Chief Executive of the British Liver Trust, said:
“Liver disease is one of the most pressing and most preventable health crises facing the UK today and we are delighted it has been included in this important report. The new investment in alcohol intervention pilots is welcome, but far more needs to be done. We urgently need a comprehensive, cross-government alcohol strategy to address harmful drinking and ensure that every person can access the care they need and reduce the stark health inequalities highlighted in today’s report.”
Men can be less likely to seek help and more likely to suffer in silence. This, combined with a higher propensity to smoke, drink, gamble and use drugs, means men’s health is suffering, having a significant impact on families, workplaces and communities. This strategy will help men and boys to live longer, healthier lives.
Wes Streeting, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, said:
“For too long, men’s health has been overlooked. There has been a reluctance to accept that men suffer specific inequalities and hardships. The fact is that life can be really difficult for men in today’s society. Men are dying nearly four years earlier than women, and suicide remains one of the leading causes of death for men under 50.
This strategy marks a turning point – the first time we’re taking comprehensive, coordinated action to address the health challenges facing men and boys.”
Men face a range of barriers in accessing healthcare services, such as stigma and services that are not responsive to men’s needs – the strategy aims to overcome these issues and stop too many cases of preventable deaths. It puts men’s health front and centre, addressing the challenges men face and designing solutions with men, for men.”
Other key commitments in the Men’s Health Strategy include:
- Investing £3 million into community-based men’s health programmes, designed to reach those most at risk and least likely to engage with traditional services
- Men’s health training for healthcare professionals through new e-learning modules and resources
- Workplace health pilots with EDF Energy through the Keep Britain Working Vanguard Programme to support male workers in male-dominated industries
- Enhanced lung disease support for former miners, with increased investment in the Respiratory Pathways Transformation Fund in areas with significant former mining communities
- Funding research to help prevent, diagnose, treat and manage the major male killers and causes of unhealthy life years in men
The men’s health strategy supports the government’s ambition to halve the gap in healthy life expectancy between the richest and poorest regions, while increasing life expectancy for everyone.
It tackles unhealthy behaviours, loneliness and social isolation, as well as harmful societal norms that prevent men seeking help, focusing on places that men frequent such as workplaces and sports clubs to drive change.
Read the full report here.
