November Awareness

It seems that every month there is a new campaign to raise awareness about something. We live in a society that can spread awareness much more easily through social media, this is fantastic for holistic health care. As a chiropractor I deal with physical pain and dysfunction, but oftentimes it is a complex model that includes interactions between multiple systems. This includes mechanical physical health (muscles, joints), internal health (bones, inflammation, diet), and mental health (anxiety, depression, kinesiophobia, unhelpful beliefs about pain). November raises awareness for a few conditions that are important for each persons comprehensive health care.

Blue ribbon on sky blue blackground with a black mustache instead of a pin, representing Novembers Movember awareness month for men's health.

Movember for Men’s Health Awareness

November has become synonymous with Movember, the month for men to grow a mustache to raise awareness for men’s health. This includes cancers affecting men like testicular and prostate cancer. It also includes awareness for mental health. According to Movember Canada, 3 out of 4 suicides in Canada are by men. A few years ago I explored some statistics regarding perception of mental health experienced by men on facebook. It really highlighted the lack of support and acceptance that men face when dealing with mental health struggles.

A snapshot of a facebook post discussing Movember awareness and the stigma around men experiencing depression. A table showing belief statements is presented and referenced from the 2016 article "Stigma in Male Depression and Suicide - A Canadian Sex Comparison Study"

November is Osteoporosis Awareness Month

According to Osteoporosis Canada, 1 in 3 women and 1 in 5 men will suffer from an osteoporotic fracture during their lifetime.

As a chiropractor, I typically treat individuals who have osteoporosis with gentle manual therapy (no spinal adjustments), exercise therapy, and health education.

Understanding osteoporosis is important if you have it to help manage your lifestyle and reduce likelihood of fractures. That being said, learning about it before you have it can help you take preventative measures to reduce your risk of developing it in the future. Take this quiz to assess your risk and to learn more about modifiable risk factors.