A new report from Leeds Beckett University

I was very interested to attend the launch of this report which looks in great detail at all the statistics available around the health of men in Leeds.  This is of great interest to us as an organisation, as we are running a health and wellbeing project and particularly wish to make sure that male carers are accessing the service and benefitting from information and advice delivered by our experienced staff.

We know about health inequalities – people in wealthier areas of Leeds can live up to 10 years longer than people who live in more disadvantaged areas.  We try to make sure that our health and wellbeing service, as well as information and advice, is easily reached by  people living in disadvantaged areas so that we can contribute to the work being undertaken in narrowing the health inequalities gap.

This report informs us that men in Leeds are more likely to die from heart disease, cancer and breathing problems than women.  Men are more likely to have weight problems, drink too much alcohol and work long hours.  Also, shockingly, the suicide rate is five times higher for men than women.  We are also aware that many men (around 6,000 men of working age) are caring for at least 20 hours per week.

This very useful report will help us in focussing our work on the needs of men in Leeds and in making sure that our service meets the need of the diverse population  of Leeds.

http://www.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/stateofmenshealth/

Helena Bladon, Development Manager