The Silence on Men’s Health: a UK and US study

Study reveals a lack of coverage on men’s health issues across major magazines in the UK and US

• Ageing skin has 10 times more coverage in women’s magazines compared to men’s across both the US and UK markets.
• Sexual health has the most balanced coverage between the genders but is discussed roughly 3 times more in US magazines.
• The gender disparity in coverage of health issues is wider in the USA than in the UK.

Digital health platform Spring have released a study comparing the coverage of men and women’s health conditions across the US and UK. The study aims to shed light on the deafening silence around men’s health in the media and highlight how outdated masculine ideals silence conversations that could lead to improved self-care and enhanced quality of life. To help remove the stigma, the hashtag #YouAreNotAlone will be used across social media to spark conversation and smash the taboo.

The study firstly identified the top 10 most popular magazines for men and women in both markets according to circulation figures, and then investigated the frequency they discussed or mentioned health topics in their articles. The conditions selected for this study were: hair loss, sexual health (vaginal dryness and libido for women; erectile dysfunction for men), and ageing skin – all prevalent within the general population.

In the wake of the #MeToo movement, conversations about the role and impact of gender ideals in the 21st century have been centre stage in public debate. Often held as a bar for success – these ideals restrict how we express ourselves, the ideals we strive to, and the conversations we find comfortable. Worldwide, it is estimated that half of all men between the age of 40 and 70 suffer from erectile dysfunction, but as this study reveals, health conditions are alarmingly underrepresented in men’s magazines and media discussion.

The following graph highlights the gender disparity in the coverage of health conditions between men and women’s magazines in the UK between January 2017 and March 2019

The following graph compares the coverage of men and women’s health conditions across US and UK magazines between January 2017 and March 2019

A full comparative breakdown of the findings is available on the website. 

Further findings:

Hair loss is the most widely reported condition for both men and women:

• Hair loss secures consistent coverage across women’s magazines in both markets; whereas only a handful of men’s magazines highlight the condition.
• For women, hair loss is more widely discussed in the US, with 5% more coverage than in the UK; for men, hair loss is more widely discussed in the UK, with 12% more coverage.

The US has strong coverage on sexual health:

• For men and women, sexual health topics have far more coverage in the US – though magazines like Cosmopolitan and Men’s Health host the majority of the discussion.

• In the UK, coverage on sexual health issues appears 3 times more often in women’s magazines than men’s magazines.

• For men, the coverage of erectile dysfunction is 4 times greater in the US, with 284 mentions on the topic compared to 68 in the UK over the same period.

Ageing skin has the largest disparity between men and women:

• Women’s magazines in both markets have 10 times as much coverage on ageing skin than men’s magazines.

• Ageing skin has consistently high coverage across all women’s outlets; while Men’s Health and GQ are the only men’s magazines with significant discussion on the topic.
• For men, coverage on ageing skin is 8% higher in the US.

A full breakdown of the findings and the methodology for the study are available on the website