Men’s health is often discussed in terms of fitness, body weight and exercise. These things matter, but some of the most important indicators of health are much less visible.
Blood pressure can rise without obvious symptoms. Cholesterol levels can change without making you feel unwell. Gradual changes in mood, urinary habits or sexual function can be easy to put down to age, stress or a busy period at work.
Looking after your health therefore involves more than reacting when something feels seriously wrong. It also means knowing what is normal for you, keeping up with appropriate health checks and paying attention when something changes.
Ana Carolina Goncalves, BPharm, Superintendent Pharmacist at Pharmica, explains:
“Some important health problems can develop without causing obvious symptoms at first, which is why prevention and routine health checks matter. It is also worth paying attention to persistent changes in things such as energy levels, mood, sleep, weight or urinary habits. A symptom does not automatically mean that something serious is wrong, but if a change continues or is unusual for you, speaking to a healthcare professional is usually more useful than simply ignoring it.”
Know your blood pressure and cholesterol
Feeling healthy does not necessarily mean every health marker is where it should be.
High blood pressure and raised cholesterol are important examples because they may not produce noticeable symptoms. Over time, however, they can contribute to cardiovascular disease.
For people aged between 40 and 74 in England who meet the eligibility criteria, the NHS Health Check assesses cardiovascular risk and typically includes blood pressure and cholesterol measurements alongside questions about smoking, alcohol, physical activity and family history.
Even outside that age group, understanding your cardiovascular risk can still be useful, particularly if close relatives have experienced heart disease or stroke at a relatively young age.
Lifestyle remains an important part of prevention. Regular physical activity, avoiding smoking, maintaining a healthy weight and moderating alcohol consumption can all contribute to better cardiovascular health.
The important point is not to rely entirely on how fit you feel. Some risk factors need to be measured.
Do not normalise persistent tiredness
Everyone has periods when they sleep badly or feel exhausted. Problems arise when tiredness becomes persistent and starts to feel like a new normal.
There are many possible explanations. Sleep quality, workload, alcohol, stress and insufficient physical activity may all play a role. But persistent fatigue can also accompany health conditions including anaemia, diabetes and some thyroid disorders.
Changes occurring alongside tiredness can provide useful clues. Increased thirst and needing to urinate more frequently, for example, are among the symptoms associated with type 2 diabetes.
Rather than trying to identify the cause yourself, consider speaking to a GP if unexplained fatigue persists, particularly when it is accompanied by other changes.
Changes in urinary habits are worth mentioning
Urinary symptoms are another area that men sometimes simply learn to live with.
A weaker urine flow, difficulty starting to urinate, needing to go more often or regularly getting up during the night can become more common as men get older. An enlarged prostate is one possible explanation and is particularly common after the age of 50.
These symptoms do not automatically indicate prostate cancer. In fact, benign prostate enlargement is common and is not itself prostate cancer.
However, persistent or changing urinary symptoms should still be discussed with a GP because different conditions can produce similar symptoms.
Blood in the urine, pain when urinating or an inability to urinate requires more urgent medical advice.
Get to know what is normal for your testicles
Testicular health is relevant well before middle age.
The NHS advises men and boys from puberty onwards to check their testicles regularly so that they become familiar with their normal size, shape and feel.
One testicle naturally being slightly larger or hanging lower than the other is common. What matters more is noticing a new change.
A lump, swelling, increase in size, persistent ache or a feeling of heaviness should be checked by a GP. There are many non-cancerous causes of testicular lumps and swelling, but it is important not to try to diagnose the cause yourself.
Testicular cancer is most common among men aged 15 to 49, making awareness particularly important among younger adults who may otherwise assume that routine health concerns are something to think about later in life.
Sexual health can also reflect general health
Occasional difficulty getting or maintaining an erection is common and can happen because of stress, tiredness or drinking too much alcohol.
If it becomes a recurring problem, however, it is worth discussing rather than simply dismissing it.
Persistent erectile dysfunction can sometimes be associated with conditions such as high blood pressure, raised cholesterol or diabetes. Depression, anxiety, hormone problems and some medicines can also contribute.
Effective treatments are available. Sildenafil, the active ingredient in Viagra, is one of a group of medicines known as PDE-5 inhibitors that increase blood flow to help support an erection during sexual stimulation.
Treatment still needs to be suitable for the individual. Sildenafil can interact with some medicines and must not be taken with nitrate medicines used for conditions such as angina because of the risk of a significant fall in blood pressure.
Most importantly, treating the symptom should not mean ignoring a possible underlying cause when erectile difficulties are persistent.
Mental health deserves the same attention as physical symptoms
Men’s health is not limited to what can be found in a blood test or physical examination.
Periods of stress and low mood happen to most people, but persistent changes deserve attention. Depression can involve prolonged low mood, loss of enjoyment or motivation, disturbed sleep, fatigue and changes in appetite or sex drive.
Mental health problems also do not always look like obvious sadness. Irritability, withdrawing from other people, poor sleep or losing interest in activities can all be signs that something is not right.
Speaking to somebody early does not require waiting until things have reached crisis point. A GP can help assess symptoms and discuss appropriate support, while NHS talking therapies can also be accessed directly in many areas.
Alcohol can affect more than you realise
Alcohol occupies an awkward position in discussions about health because its effects can be gradual.
Regularly drinking above recommended limits can affect the liver, blood pressure, sleep and mental wellbeing. Drinking heavily can also interfere with sexual function and make maintaining a healthy weight more difficult.
Cutting back does not have to mean an all-or-nothing approach. Keeping track of how much you actually drink, including alcohol-free days during the week and noticing whether drinking has become closely linked to stress or sleep can all be useful.
If reducing alcohol proves difficult, a GP or local alcohol-support service can offer advice without requiring somebody to wait until their drinking has caused a major health problem.
Think in terms of patterns, not perfection
Good health rarely comes down to one perfect diet, one supplement or one exercise routine.
For most men, the fundamentals remain relatively ordinary: moving regularly, eating a varied diet, sleeping adequately, avoiding smoking, moderating alcohol and maintaining social connections.
Equally important is recognising patterns.
A bad night’s sleep is usually just a bad night’s sleep. A temporary period of stress may pass. Occasional erection problems are common. What deserves more attention is a symptom that keeps returning, becomes progressively worse or appears alongside other unexplained changes.
Routine checks provide another part of that picture. Knowing your blood pressure, understanding your cardiovascular risk and attending health checks when offered can identify problems that would otherwise be easy to miss.
Men’s health is not about constantly looking for something to be wrong. It is about becoming familiar enough with your own health to recognise when something has changed, and being willing to ask for advice when it has.
