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Health Education Teaching
Tools for Men’s Health

June is Men’s Health Month, a great time to focus on men’s health and some of the most common and serious health issues that affect men. Unfortunately, many men don’t pay much attention to their own health. Compared to women, men are more likely to smoke, drink too much alcohol, make risky and unhealthy choices, and avoid routine medical care. The consequences of these decisions can mean missed opportunities to prevent serious health problems or catch them early, when treatment could have been more successful.

Here at Health Edco, we have a dedicated line of men’s health education products, models, and displays that highlights health issues unique to men, such as testicular cancer, prostate cancer, male breast cancer, and male puberty. In addition to products covering these men’s health concerns, we have health education resources in our other health subject areas—such as heart health, tobacco, alcohol, and general health, to name a few—that address the health issues impacting men the most.



Read on to learn about some of the most important health concerns affecting men’s health and just a few of our health education materials and models that are perfect to convince men to take charge of their health and healthcare visits!



Heart Disease

Heart disease is the leading cause of death among men in the United States. Heart disease is a type of cardiovascular disease, which includes all diseases of the heart or blood vessels, such as atherosclerosis and stroke.

The most common type of heart disease is coronary heart disease (also known as coronary artery disease or ischemic heart disease). Coronary heart disease develops when plaque (deposits of fat, cholesterol, and other substances) builds up on the walls of coronary arteries, causing them to narrow or harden. The narrowed arteries decrease blood flow to the heart, which can cause chest pain (angina). If plaque ruptures, a blood clot can form around it and drastically reduce or block blood flow in a coronary artery, resulting in a heart attack.



The Heart Disease Risk Factors Display
helps men consider their risk for heart disease.


Risk factors for heart disease include factors outside of an individual’s control (such as a person’s age and family history of heart disease) as well as risks that can be controlled or managed. Not smoking, being physically active, and maintaining a healthy weight decrease the risk for heart disease. Smoking, being physically inactive, being overweight, and having high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes all increase the risk for heart disease. Because many men tend to avoid routine visits with their healthcare professional, they may miss the opportunity to be screened for health conditions that contribute to heart disease. Consequently, they may not realize whether they have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or type 2 diabetes, which are conditions that need to be managed to decrease heart disease risk.

Among Health Edco’s many heart health education products, models, and displays, our Heart Disease Risk Factors Display can be a great, nonthreatening, and even fun tool to help men assess their risk for heart disease. Users simply tally up the number of risk factors they have for heart disease on the sliding scale to get a general analysis of their risk for heart disease. When using the display, many men may realize that they do not actually know whether they have unhealthy cholesterol levels, high blood pressure, or even type 2 diabetes because they have not been screened by a healthcare professional. The display is an ideal resource to motivate men to visit their healthcare professional for important health screenings.



Cancer

Cancer is the second leading cause of death among men in the United States, and the leading causes of cancer death among men are lung cancer, prostate cancer, and colorectal cancer.

Nearly 90 percent of lung cancer cases are caused by smoking, and men are more likely than women to smoke. Because every person who smokes is guaranteed to have negative health consequences—from multiple forms of cancer to heart disease, premature death, and more—quitting smoking is essential.



Our Smoking Cessation Package contains handouts
and displays to help smokers successfully quit smoking.


Featuring take-home handouts, an informative display, and a Giant Cigarette Action Display, our Smoking Cessation Package can grab men’s attention on the many reasons why they should stop smoking and how they can do it. Both the included Benefits of Quitting Smoking Tear Pad and the Giant Cigarette Action Display reveal that the health benefits of quitting smoking begin with the end of the last puff and grow over time. The Quit Smoking for Life Folding Display and Booklet offer inspiring advice for how to quit smoking and stay smoke-free. And, the included hourglass cigarettes represent the 40 seconds of life the average smoker loses with every puff of a cigarette. The package is ideal for office break rooms, corporate wellness initiatives, or anywhere to help inspire smokers to quit.



Our Feel for Yourself: Prostate Conditions Display features lifelike, palpable models
that depict the differences among normal, enlarged, and cancerous prostates.


In 2018, more than 211,000 men in the United States were diagnosed with prostate cancer, and more than 31,000 men died from the disease. Our Feel for Yourself: Prostate Conditions Display features five soft, lifelike prostate models. The models represent prostate conditions ranging from a benign prostate and benign prostatic hyperplasia to early cancer and late invasive prostate cancer. The display encourages men 40 and older to discuss prostate screening with their healthcare professionals, helping them consider their individual risk for prostate cancer as well as the risks and benefits of screening.



Teaching men about the importance of colorectal screening is
simplified with our See for Yourself: Colorectal Exams Easel Display.


Colorectal cancer is the third leading cause of cancer death in men. In its early stages, colorectal cancer often has no symptoms. Our See for Yourself: Colorectal Exams Easel Display is a memorable, effective way to highlight how colorectal cancer can be prevented and caught early with colorectal cancer screening. Models in the display progress from a normal colon to a colon with a polyp to various stages of colon cancer.



Unintentional Injuries

Unintentional injuries, including motor vehicle crashes, are a leading cause of death in men. Male drivers involved in fatal motor vehicle crashes are more likely than female drivers to be legally intoxicated. Our Drinking Clock Action Display is just one of our many alcohol education materials to help raise awareness about the dangers of drinking and driving.



The Drinking Clock Action Display teaches
the importance of taking time to sober up.


The Drinking Clock Action Display includes a timer with 4 minutes of clock time equaling 1 hour of actual time. For every drink consumed in an hour, the clock is turned one space to convey a general sense of how long it takes for the body to process alcohol. The clock can be a useful tool to help men understand how even just one drink can impair their ability to drive and why it’s important to take time to sober up.



COPD

Another leading cause of death among men is chronic lower respiratory disease, which includes chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). More than 73,000 men in the United States died of COPD in 2018. COPD includes a group of diseases that obstruct airflow from the lungs and cause breathing problems. Chronic bronchitis and emphysema, two of the most common conditions that make up COPD, damage air sacs and block airways, making it difficult to breathe. People with COPD may feel as though they can’t breathe and be unable to take a deep breath.

As with lung cancer, most causes of COPD are the result of cigarette smoking. Tobacco smoke causes COPD by weakening the lungs’ defenses against infections, narrowing air passages, causing swelling in air tubes, and destroying air sacs. Anyone who smokes or has smoked in the past is at risk for getting COPD.



Our Drowned Lung™ Model drives home the reality
of COPD with an audible, hacking smoker’s cough.


Sure to grab men’s attention, our interactive Drowned Lung Model brings the harsh reality of COPD to life. This lifelike model of a damaged lung swims in simulated phlegm, and picking up the jar triggers a voice module that plays a recording of a gasping, gurgling cough, typical of a COPD sufferer’s persistent coughing, increased mucus production, shortness of breath, wheezing, and frequent chest infections. The model is another ideal tool to help inspire men to quit smoking.



Discover More Great Health Teaching Tools for All Audiences

June may be Men’s Health Month, but healthy lifestyles and healthcare visits and screenings are important for men, women, and children all year round! To find the best teaching resources for your audience, visit our health education topics to view our full engaging and effective line of health education materials and models.


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