As Father’s Day approaches, we thought we’d take a moment to talk about the men in our lives and the importance of not being shy about utilizing the services of a dermatologist. We realize that it may not have anything to do with “being shy” at all. This is certainly anecdotal, but let’s face it, there’s a large percentage of the male populace that probably don’t spend a second thinking about their skin and if there exists potential ailments on their own person. Anecdote, but not without some degree of merit considering males are 24% less likely to have visited their general practitioner in the last calendar year. If men aren’t visiting their regular doctor, why on earth should we assume they’re seeking out a specialist such as a dermatologist?
According to the Dermatology Times (and, quite frankly, we’re in agreement): “This is especially concerning, because men have been found to be particularly in need of a derm’s guidance and care! Only 34% of men wear sunscreen, according to one study. Another study found that 70% of men didn’t know the warning signs of skin cancer. And men over 50 are twice as likely as women to develop and die of melanoma.”
We need to be fostering awareness and the importance of skin care with the men living among us.
Here’s what we know about our own practice:
About 36% of our current patient base is male. Not bad – a smidge over a third, but this number can certainly grow, and is probably high in nationwide statistics.
Five common reasons men visit us here at Dermatology and Skin Health are as follows:
- Unknown lesion(s)
- Actinic keratosis
- Full skin check/moles
- Rash (could also be psoriasis/vitiligo)
- Warts
“Men should not - but often do - underestimate the seriousness of skin conditions, or resign themselves to life with discomfort. Some can be extremely serious in themselves, like melanoma or psoriasis, and others can be suggestive of underlying issues - like hair thinning suggesting thyroid malfunction, or skin darkening as a symptom of Addison’s disease or insulin resistance.”
So, this weekend, while we’re celebrating our fathers, let’s remind men everywhere that skin health is vital. It’s the largest organ we’ve got and without it, well, we’d cease to exist. We need to protect it, and, from time-to-time, we may need a professional to weigh in just to be sure our skin is happy and healthy and not fighting back and leading us down a path of medical misfortune.
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