What is Movember?

This month, thousands of men around the world are growing their moustaches.

Either Charlie Chaplin is slowly infiltrating the men’s fashion scene or there is a perfectly valid reason for this.

Thankfully, the latter is true.

We all know someone who has taken part in Movember but there’s little said about what Movember actually is.

In the abyss of the dubious moustaches lies a charity making strides worldwide.

Movember is a charity that tackles men’s health, an issue often overlooked in this day and age. Their goal is simple: to stop men dying too young.

Their work started in 2003 when 30 friends took part in Movember and has augmented beyond imagination to 5 million participants to date.

They carry out groundbreaking projects all year round to achieve their aim by tackling prostate cancer, testicular cancer, mental health and suicide prevention.

Many shocking statistics are to be seen on the Movember website:

• On average, men die 6 years before women globally for largely preventable reasons.
• Unchecked prostate cancer rates will double over the next 15 years.
• One man dies by suicide every minute.
• Males are accountable for 75% of suicides worldwide.

The charity aims to combat every single one of those with the funds raised by the millions of  ‘Mo Bros’ and ‘Mo Sistas’ who get involved every year.

Yes, you read that right – Mo Sistas.

Women can also get involved in loads of different ways from hosting a Mo-Fest to raise funds and awareness, moving 60 km over the month for the 60 men we lose to suicide each month to making a donation to a Mo Bro or fellow Mo Sista.

Love Island star Chris Hughes showed bravery when he was interviewed on This Morning Hughes, 26, was personally affected by prostate cancer at the age of 14 when he underwent a few operations on his testicles after discovering an issue.

Hughes said: “It’s a shame that people are so shy in terms of going and getting themselves checked out. You’ve seen everything and so have the GPs who deal with this.”

Thankfully, he suffered no long-term damage. He advised using a thumb to feel for lumps and even went as far as demonstrating a doctor’s testicular check-up live on air.

Movember is a great chance to shine more light on these important subjects and even around the campus here at UL, it is great to see some quirky moustaches around the place.

There are also MoTalks at UL happening weekly this month to discuss men’s health.

This week’s one is focused on mental health in KBG-11 at 6pm on Thursday 21st.

This sort of thing has a domino effect and more and more men are speaking about their problems all year round which can only be a good thing. 

For more information about Movember, visit their website – https://ie.movember.com/