How to keep men healthy: critical health tests

Professor Kerryn Phelps reveals the regular health checks men should undergo to pick up early warning signs of illnesses and diseases.

New Zealand males now have one of the highest life expectancies in the world. Compared with boys born in 1900, boys born in 2013-2015 can expect to live about 22 years longer. This is largely due to improved early childhood care, immunisation and the development of medical treatments such as antibiotics for infectious diseases.

However, males might be living longer but they are doing so with a greater burden of chronic disease. About one-third of males have a chronic health condition such as asthma, arthritis, cancer, diabetes, heart and circulatory diseases or osteoporosis. Nearly 70 per cent of Kiwi males are overweight or obese, and nearly 20 per cent are smokers.

If you are a man, or you are looking out for the health and wellbeing of the special males in your life, there is so much to think about. As a GP, my job is to look out for the appropriate check-ups and investigations at different life stages. In order to do this, it is important to have a regular GP who knows your health history and who is able to guide you.