International Men’s Health Week

Awareness – Prevention – Education – Family

International Men's Health Week

International Men’s Health Week 2021 is June 14-20

Led by Men's Health Network, representatives from six leading men's health organizations around the world met at the 2nd World Congress on Men's Health in Vienna, Austria in 2002 and resolved to work together to launch International Men's Health Week (IMHW). The goal is to increase awareness of male health issues on a global level and to encourage inter- and intra-national institutions to develop health policies and services that meet the specific needs of men, boys, and their families.

The history of International Men's Health Week and Men's Health Month can be found here.

Recognition from the President of the United States provides encouragement to men, boys, and their families around the globe.

To view the IMHW web site for a country, click on the links below:

Other countries/regions may celebrate Men's Health Week and Men's Health Month at other times in the year. Please contact us at mhw@menshealthweek.org for further information.

What you can do:

Here are some tools that will help you create a Men's Health week event unique to where you work, play, or pray:

- For a list of things you can plan: click here

- To view samples of activities others have designed to celebrate Men's Health week: click here

For more information, help with programs, and/or to have your initiative listed on the Men's Health Week web site, please contact us at mhw@menshealthweek.org.

International Men’s Health Week - From the Beginning

Men’s Health Week, celebrated annually during the week ending on Father’s Day as recognized in the USA, honors the importance of the health and wellness of boys and men. Father’s Day was chosen as the anchor to make use of the extra attention paid to male family members near that holiday. Men's Health Week provides an opportunity to educate the public about what can be done to improve the state of men's health while providing free and convenient health services to boys and men who wouldn't otherwise receive such care. The response has been overwhelming, generating thousands of awareness activities in the USA and around the globe.

Men's Health Week was created by Congress in 1994 to heighten awareness of preventable health problems and encourage early detection and treatment of disease among men and boys. The bills creating Men’s Health Week were sponsored by former Senator Bob Dole and former Congressman Bill Richardson. The sponsors cited the cost-effectiveness of a shift from treatment to prevention in health care emphasis when presenting the bill. The supporters of Men's Health Week also noted that prevention requires public awareness and designating a week would spread information on preventing illnesses affecting males, which includes nationwide events and screenings.

"I especially thank … the Men’s Health Network for … tireless efforts on behalf of this legislation," Congressman Bill Richardson (NM), upon Congressional passage of Men's Health Week in 1994.

In the USA, the governors of the states and territories in the USA have adopted the week, as have Native American leaders and the mayors of many of the major cities. Those proclamations are displayed on the Men's Health Week website. Typical Men’s Health Week events include educational lectures by sports figures, free health screenings, health fairs, and seminars.

Men's Health Week events are planned so that they are easily attended even by men with a full work schedule. Things to do can be found on the official Men's Health Month website. Although not officially recognized by Congress, men’s health activists observe Men’s Health Month throughout June.

Men’s Health Network (MHN) was cosponsor of the first World Congress on Men’s Health, held in Vienna, Austria in 2001. One of the goals set by MHN for that event was to establish a global network of health activists that would recognize a common men’s health wellness period based on the well established Men’s Health Week (MHW) in the USA. This concept gained general acceptance and, again led by Men’s Health Network, representatives from several leading men’s health organizations from around the world met at the 2nd World Congress in 2002 and resolved to work together on International Men’s Health Week (IMHW), to be recognized yearly at the same time as MHW in the USA. MHN hosts the International Men's Health Week web page while some participating countries have their own country-specific Men’s Health Week page while other efforts have very little web presence. Some other countries/regions may celebrate Men’s Health Week and Men’s Health Month at other times in the year. Please contact mhw@menshealthweek.org for further information.

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