Men don't visit doctors as often as women, but it's just as important for their health

Rob Williams decided two years ago he didn't like the way he looked or felt, so he set out to change it.

No doctors, no magic pills, no surgery, just hard work and a healthy diet.

Williams, 44, began working out at Anytime Fitness almost six days a week, focusing on burning fat and building muscle. He started his weight loss journey at 240 pounds and using an inhaler for asthma. Since then, he's lost approximately 60 pounds, and says he no longer needs the inhaler.

"I just decided on my own. I played football and wrestled and stuff in high school and I knew I could get back to that point. So I just decided on my own, there's got to be a better way to feel than how I feel right now," Williams said.

Williams' story is not an uncommon one; many people decide to take their health into their own hands and make lifestyle changes without consulting a doctor.

Rob Williams of Cape Girardeau lifts a barbell in an upright row while working out Wednesday, June 18, 2014, at Anytime Fitness in Cape Girardeau. Williams, who started his fitness journey two years ago weighing 245 pounds, is down to 180 pounds with workouts each weekday and a better diet. (Fred Lynch)

Dr. Erica Gibson, a primary-care physician at Saint Francis Medical Center, said for every 70 women who get regular physicals, only 30 men do the same.

Gibson said she thinks the role society plays in a man's development is part of the reason men are averse to visiting a doctors' office.

" ... There's the emphasis on work for men, to make ends meet and go to work, to not complain," Gibson said.

There's also a noticeable increase in men visiting physicians who are married versus those who are single.

SoutheastHEALTH Primary Care physician Jamie Harrison said the main reason men come in for checkups is because their wives make them.

Gibson agreed, saying men who are married definitely live longer than those who are not because they are pushed to focus on their health.

The average age of death is 81 years old for women and 76 for men. It is thought that estrogen is one of the benefits of women living longer.

Harrison said that estrogen during a woman's premenopausal years is thought to protect them from illnesses such as heart disease.

When receiving a checkup, the process is similar for men and women.

"There is an age-appropriate list of preventive measures that should be reviewed once per year regardless of gender," Harrison said.

Gibson agreed, but added that the main difference is between cervical and prostate cancer. She said everything else is the same except the "reproductive checks."

Gibson said social media and the Internet are good tools in educating men about visiting the doctor, as men tend to do some research before showing up for appointments.

David Coleman strongly agrees with the idea of researching health issues and addressing them actively.

In 2011, Coleman created the not-for-profit online movement ManExam, an educational website that assists men in examining themselves for testicular cancer.

Coleman is a testicular cancer survivor, and now works to spread awareness for self-examination.

"When I was diagnosed, I was not aware that there was a self-exam for testicular cancer," Coleman said. "I had no knowledge of any symptoms or anything. When I started to get symptoms, I didn't make a connection to testicular cancer, so the more I read about it, I found out that it's the No. 1 cancer for men ages 15 to 35."

Testicular cancer is called the young man's cancer, primarily affecting those in their late teens to early 20s.

"I started to look at the deaths, all the deaths were very young guys, they were 17, 18, early 20s, because they wouldn't go to the doctor -- whether it's embarrassment or things of that nature, but they were not going to the doctor," he said. "By the time they went and were aware of it, they were in stage four."

Coleman said his website, manexam.org, gets roughly 400 views a day from all over the country by men who are experiencing irregularities and want to find a prognosis for their symptoms.

Gibson said it usually takes a health concern for men to visit a doctor. She said the most common reasons are when something doesn't work well anymore, men begin to lose function, develop new problems or worry about injury or infection.

Williams is one of the men who fall into this category. He said it had been almost five years since his last doctor's visit -- that he's "not one of those guys who likes to go to the doctor."

Gibson said there are still many things for men to do if they want to stay healthy and aren't regular patients.

"Maintain a healthy weight, exercising regularly -- 150 minutes a week doing whatever it is you like to do -- and treating chronic diseases such as diabetes," Gibson said. "Making sure those are well controlled and managed [is important]."

It is advised that men and women see a doctor at least once a year for a checkup.

smaue@semissourian.com

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