Starting My Blog in Movember: Growth of a Global Men’s Health Movement

Raising Awareness and Funds for Men’s Health One Face at a Time

A few years ago, I learned about an Australian movement called Movember. Born in a pub, the movement began as a lighthearted attempt to bring the mustache back into fashion.  Since its inception, Movember has morphed into an international Men’s Health awareness and fundraising campaign.

The determination and resolve behind the movement is best told in a TEDxToronto video of Mr. Adam Garone, Founder and Movember CEO.

When combined with social media, the power of a few individuals to bring positive change to a health care issue is demonstrated on a global stage.

In the United States, interest in Movember has increased rapidly over the past couple of years.   Currently, the United States ranks third in global fundraising and fourth in global participation.  The United Kingdom leads the world in participation and Canada leads in fundraising.

Track Movember stats at: https://us.movember.com/leaderboards/

Join the Movember Movement

Men interested in learning more about Movember can join at Movember.com.  You will be asked to pick a country and create a personalized profile.  The site includes a handy mustache style guide. More importantly, it contains a variety of high quality educational materials about men’s health.

A mobile app can also be downloaded that contains helpful age-specific health cards. The app has a nifty “Mo Tracker” that allows the Mo Bro to document and follow his mustache growth over time.

Movember As a Physician

As a physician, what appeals to me about Movember is simply the ability to band with other men — Mo Bros — from around the world.  In the process, we have the opportunity to think about what it means to live a healthy lifestyle as a man.  With the support of our family, wives or girlfriends — Mo Sistas, we have the added opportunity to raise funds for organizations researching ways to make all men healthier.