Dr. Jeff Balser, vice chancellor for Health Affairs and dean of the School of Medicine for Vanderbilt University, addresses the audience at the unveiling of the 2010 Tennessee Men’s Health Report Card at the Tennessee State Capitol in late September. Ba

Click it.

Put that fork down.

Take a walk.

The message of the Tennessee Men’s Health Report Card came through resoundingly. If men living in Tennessee would consistently buckle their seat belts, eat a healthy diet and add exercise to their regular routine, there would be dramatic improvement in men’s health in the state, according to the most recent study in Tennessee.

The first Men’s Health Report Card was clearly marked “Needs to Improve” when released by the Vanderbilt Institute for Medicine and Public Health, Meharry Medical College and the Tennessee Department of Health at the end of September.

David Penson, MD, MPH, professor of Urologic Surgery with Vanderbilt University Medical Center and a member of its Center for Surgical Quality and Outcomes Research, served as co-chairman of the Report Card’s advisory panel. He said that the report is a “clarion call to action” for all citizens of the state.

The report, which was assembled and written by a multidisciplinary panel of scientific experts from across the region, provides data on the health status of more than 3 million adult men, comparing Tennesseans to the Center for Disease Control’s national benchmarks for health improvement.

Using comparatives from 2009, the most recent year with a complete data-set available, the 2010 Report Card relied on a compilation of data from sources such as birth and death certificates, the statewide hospital discharge data reporting system, infectious diseases data reported to the Department of Health, and other sources including the recent U. S. Census.

“This was not a ‘discrete’ study,” Penson said, “We used existing data sources online and compiled that information. The key difference is that this time we graded the results to see how we stand against national standards.”

For the most part, the report’s findings offer a sobering reminder that Tennessee’s men need to take a more active role in improving their individual health. Penson added, “The message that good health starts with the individual comes through resoundingly.”

Wayne Riley, MD, MBA, MPH, president and chief executive officer of Meharry Medical College, summed up the study by saying, “It’s a proverbial kick in the pants, slap in the face, shot across the bow,” encouraging men in the state to incorporate this new information into their daily lives and calling for an initial focus on a basics like “fastening our seat belts, participating in early screenings for cancer, and watching what we eat.

“More importantly,” Riley continued, “improving our men's health, even modestly, is indeed achievable and will help to free our wives, families and our significant others from the burdens of our relatively poor health status and enhance the economic and social development of our state.”

The report gave Tennesseans poor or failing grades in nine of 14 categories including those for heart disease, overall cancer deaths, lung cancer, head and neck cancer, chronic liver disease, AIDS, motor vehicle deaths, suicide and homicide.

There was positive news for categories such as diabetes, colorectal cancer, prostate cancer and chronic lower respiratory disease, areas where Tennessee men received passing grades. The results also gave them an “A” for a lower number of deaths associated with diabetes and prostate cancer.

Susan R. Cooper, MSN, RN, State Health Commissioner for Tennessee, said, “Our fathers, husbands, brothers and sons are integral to our communities, and this report rings the alarm for us all to get on board to address the health issues that are shortening the life span of men in Tennessee.”

Young men in the state, ages 18-39, die most frequently from motor vehicle accidents; for men ages 40-64, cancer is the most common cause of death; and men aged 65 and older most frequently die of heart disease.

Penson said that he was surprised by information about the sources of mortality in young men — in addition to motor accidents, mental health issues, particularly suicide, are significant.

Although the leading causes vary by age, they are largely preventable by lifestyle changes such as wearing seat belts, dietary moderation and increased physical activity.

In younger men, decreased alcohol and drug use could reduce motor vehicle accidents and also influence death rates from suicide, homicide and forms of unintentional injury. During 2008, 59 percent of all motor vehicle accidents in Tennessee involved failure to use proper restraints. Of those fatalities tested, 42 percent had blood alcohol levels above the legal limit. Comparatively, nationwide in 2008, only 31 percent of men killed in motor vehicle accidents had blood alcohol levels twice the legal limit.

Jeff Balser, MD, PhD, vice chancellor for Health Affairs and dean of the Vanderbilt University School Medicine, said, “While there are positive findings in the 2010 Men’s Health Report Card, it should be of great concern to all Tennesseans that obesity and lack of physical activity are epidemic among men in our state. With one-third of the state’s men reporting that they are obese, we need to continue to refine our role in primary prevention to support and motivate citizens. There is great opportunity to improve the lives of Tennesseans.”

Penson said the study is meaningless unless individual men begin to implement the findings (1 in 5 men in the state don’t buckle their seat beats) and policy makers begin to work with state government, the medical community and insurers to encourage a healthier lifestyle for all citizens.

The study was published by the Institute for Medicine and Public Health at Vanderbilt, a trans-disciplinary institute designed to bring together a variety of resources from Vanderbilt, the local community, the nation, and around the world with the common goals of working together to promote healthier living, improve the quality of health services and preparing leaders who will advance healthcare. To review the complete 2010 Tennessee Men’s Health Report Card, go online to www.TNMensHealthReportCard.vanderbilt.edu 

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