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Top 5 reasons men should see a doctor

Although the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lists heart disease as the number one cause of death in men, breaking down the causes by age tells a different story.

And that’s why men need to read closely.

Once over the age of 85, heart disease is the most common cause of death. However, in men ages 45 to 85, cancer is what takes the lead and is usually “silent,” meaning without symptoms, in its early stages.

Not surprisingly, men under the age of 45 die predominantly from accidents, whether it’s an individual feeling of male invincibility, or just a genetic predisposition to risky behaviors, we may never know.

Chronic lung illness and stroke round-off the top five.

These statistics can be not only eye-opening, but personally useful when considering one’s own health. After all, age 45 to 85 is prime living. For many, you have just arrived. Worries of the day are staying on top, keeping the keys from the teenager or rejoining the dating scene. The feeling of the day is: If it’s not broken (or dysfunctional), don’t fix it.

But why wait until then? It’s always cheaper to change to brakes before you need to cut the motor.

Gone are the days of waiting for “the wife” to worry for you. In a Cleveland Clinic survey, only 19% of men reported a significant other’s nagging as a reason for a visit. Men nationwide have taken to caring for themselves (numbers are still lagging though) and have realized that an annual physical exam and screenings are the best way to stay away from doctors.

I can recall my grandmother saying “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” That still holds true today. With silent cancer growth taking out men in their prime, only prevention, via screenings, will seal the deal in your favor.

The top five causes of death in men are also the top five reasons to see your doctor.

So, again,here are the top causes of death in men:

1. Heart Disease

2. Cancer

3. Accident

4. Chronic Lung Illness

5. Stroke

It’s hard to fight with facts. Why then do men resist seeing the doctor?

Is it really because you are fine? Or are you fearful of what we will find? Is it a threatened sense of masculinity? Or are you really just too busy?

As it turns out, there are plenty of excuses. But let’s look at what surveys say the top excuses used were: 1) too busy, followed by, 2) afraid of what will be found and, 3) uncomfortable with examinations. When all three excuses reside in the same man, a missed opportunity for prevention occurs and a late diagnosis is made.

That man later faces more invasive examination, more doctors than needed and an erosion of his mental and emotional well-being. All from just delaying visits to the doctor.

If you still won’t do it for “the you, now,” then do it for “the you, later.” You know, that one that you’re saving up for now. The one who plans to retire and watch more sports, or retire and work some more, or retire and play golf forever, or retire and … O.K., you get the drift?

Just go get a check-up. It’s cheaper and less invasive to do it now.

And, stop the excuses —  you do have the time.

Anthonette Desire, M.D., who saw patients at the Shelter Island Medical Center for several years, is an internal medicine-trained physician currently serving on the medical board of St. Charles Hospital. She uses her experiences as a doctor and mother of a boy with autism to educate and support patients and parents via her writings, website (desiremd.com) and upcoming book.