Feds looking for input for men and boys’ health strategy

The federal government has released a survey asking for input from people regarding the current state of men and boys’ mental and physical health with the goal of developing a national strategy. The initiative has researchers and advocates applauding the move, with one non-profit saying the situation with men’s health is at a crossroads and men are in crisis.

“Men are in a real crisis right now. (About) 4,000 men (are) disappearing in Canada every single year, that’s not a good state for society or the Canadian population as a whole,” said Kenton Boston, president and CEO of the Canadian Men’s Health Foundation (CMHF), who was elated that the federal government is taking this initiative, something it has already done for women and girls and has already created a strategy for them.

Last December, Minister of Health Marjorie Michel announced plans to launch a federal men’s health strategy in 2026 after participating in a men’s round table. In February of this year, the government released its men and boys’ survey.

“We invite everyone to join this conversation. Men, young adults, boys, partners, families, friends and communities can share their experiences and ideas,” stated a Health Canada spokesperson in an email.

The survey has four sections and takes less than 10 minutes to complete.

According to the Health Canada spokesperson, the government will also consult other agencies and departments within the federal service in identifying opportunities and gaps in order to align programming for men and boys’ health needs.

Health Canada reports that Canadian men face distinct health challenges, including shorter life expectancy (80 years compared to 84 years in women). They also experience higher rates of premature death, suicide, substance use, heart disease, and gambling addictions.

The government health agency noted on its website that social, economic, and cultural factors play a major role in shaping health outcomes for men, for example, men are more likely to have lower education levels and experience higher rates of incarceration and homelessness than women.

One statistic that is concerning is that half of the male population is socially isolated and men are facing higher levels of anxiety and depression, according to Boston, who noted 75 percent of all suicides are men.

All those interviewed by The Carillon stated traditional male stereotypes are still being projected onto men and boys. When they are unable to meet the stereotypes that society has placed on them, they start to suffer from mental health crises.

Last fall, CMHF conducted research that found anger issues are also on the rise in men who are having difficulty dealing with anxiety and depression and its root causes.

Boston stresses it’s important for men to talk about their problems either with their loved ones or in peer-to-peer groups in a safe environment.

Southeast Men’s Group co-founder Jeremy Wiens runs two men’s support groups, one in Ste Anne and another in Steinbach where between 150 and 170 men have come to discuss their problems and share their lives.

“To have the government start investing into men, I think that’s a huge thing. And start investing (financially) into peer-to-peer support groups would probably be one of the best investments that they could do,” he said in regards to a question about what he’d like to see in the government’s strategy for men and boys.

“For a lot of men, (peer-to-peer support) is better than actually going to counseling because just that fear of isolation dissipates.”

The group meets at 7 p.m. on the third Tuesday of the month at the Southeast Event Center in Steinbach and at Club Jovial in St. Anne.

CMHF also offers free counselling with its MindFit Tool under the You’re Not Alone program.

Boston said CMHF would like to see the government develop a strategy that financially ties mental health into the health-care system and for there to be more funding for peer-to-peer support systems.

“I think there’s a real need and there’s a real financial conversation to be had about the role of prevention and the role of keeping people out of the health-care system through a lot of the programs that we’ve talked about,” he said.

According to Health Canada, $12 billion a year is spent on men’s health in Canada and Boston noted each suicide costs the economy up to $1 million.

“We are at a real crossroads right now. We really need to rethink health care and broadly the role of technology, health care, and funding to give all of us the support that we need.”

Regarding physical health, CMHF’s Health Check page states that men are still suffering from the eight most common ailments such as heart attacks, Type 2 diabetes, cancer, low testosterone, and erectile disfunction. It also found young people are more proactive when it came to their physical health compared to older adults.

University of Winnipeg professor Sheri-Lynn Skwarchuk, who is director of developmental studies and focuses on pre-school and early years children in her research, took the government’s survey and said it missed the ball by starting the conversation about boys with mid-adolescence and milestones later in life rather than going earlier in their development.

“I’m like, wait a minute. What about under age 12 or under age 14? I’m targeting children in preschool…we need to be targeting these things at birth, when children are first exposed to these stereotypes. We need to work on that period of their lives. So, the survey didn’t even focus on early childhood, albeit not even early elementary school years.”

Swarchuk wants to see the federal strategy bringing an awareness to gender stereotypes and how best to combat them in the early stages of a child’s development and not just during mid and late life.

For boys, the solution to address their mental health concerns of anxiety and stress is to provide support in safe spaces according to Swarchuk and Youth for Christ executive director Reuben Singh.

Singh would like the federal strategy to place emphasis on funding recreational opportunities for youth.

“But the problem is recreation sometimes costs a lot of money. So, how do we make that affordable? How do we give opportunities for people to do things that might be life-giving for them or enjoyable, but normally they can’t because of a cost-prohibitive factor.”

To take the survey, visit canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/healthy-living/improving-health-men-canada.

The survey will be open until June 1 with results expected to be published later this year.