Men's Personal Care Information
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Health Tip
Make A Great First Impression With Your Appearance
Beyond taking a shower every morning, here is some basic tips:
Check your face
You don't necessarily have to shave, but at least ensure that your face is clean and free of "debris." A quick look in the mirror to check for nose hair, stuff in your beard or crust in your eyes doesn't take more than a few seconds, and is well worth the effort.
Groom your hair (ear, nose, chest, head, etc.)
Hair growth happens with regularity, so make trimming and upkeep part of your routine. Wash and condition your hair every day (or every other day, depending on your hair type and length). Set aside one day a week (preferably a Saturday or Sunday, when you have more time) to tend to ear, nose and chest hair.
Clean your hands
In the business world, handshakes can make or break you; in the dating world, a woman expects to see nice hands. So all you have to do is cut your nails regularly, scrape away the dirt with a "nail cleaner" or a nailbrush (which you can keep in the shower to save time), wash your hands frequently (to avoid sweaty, sticky hands), and use lotion on occasion (to keep them smooth).
Apply lip balm
There is nothing worse than looking at chapped lips, and trust me, no girl will want to kiss them. Find a good lip balm and use it regularly. Just don't put too much on, or it will end up looking like lip gloss. And if you don't like applying it in public because of the unmanly look it portrays, then do it in private when you go to the bathroom.
Dress well
You don't need a suit (unless the occasion calls for it), but you should always wear clean clothes that are wrinkle-free and smell good. In other words, wear clothes that were just in your drawer or closet, not your hamper.
On a related note, select clothes that fit. After you put on your clothes, take a look in the mirror for a few seconds to make sure they fit properly. Yes, their preferred fit will vary over time as styles change (along with your body and taste), but the key here is to pay attention to what you're putting on.
Use some sort of scent
Many guys go to town wearing some sort of fragrance, using everything from scented soap and deodorant to aftershave and cologne. Other guys prefer not to use anything. Like most things in life, the answer is moderation. Pick one scent (otherwise you'll combine fragrances, which will result in a weird smell) and go with it. Just make sure it isn't too strong and make sure not to bathe in it. One final note: Don't skimp on cost here; cheap cologne will act like repellant.
Shine your shoes
People tend to look at your shoes right away. If dress shoes are appropriate, make sure they're shined. If you're wearing casual shoes, make sure they look clean and new. Tattered shoes tell the world that you either don't have money or don't care -- neither option is attractive.
For Macho Men, Doctor Visits Are Less Likely
TUESDAY, Aug. 11 (HealthDay News) -- It's no secret that men don't like to go to the doctor, but new research finds they're especially likely to stay home if they're big on being macho.
Middle-aged men who are most devoted to traditional beliefs about masculinity are half as likely as other men to get routine medical care, researchers report.
It's not clear whether feelings about masculinity directly make men avoid doctor visits; the study only indicates that a cause-and-effect link might exist. Nor do researchers know what this might mean for men's health.
Still, the findings suggest that "we could help men's health if we could dismantle this idea that manhood and masculinity is about being invulnerable, not needing help and not showing pain," said study author Kristen W. Springer, an assistant professor of sociology at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey.
Previous research has suggested that "men are less likely to go to the doctor than women, across the board," Springer said -- a notion she finds surprising because men are wealthier overall, potentially giving them better access to medical care.
Springer and a colleague launched their study to determine the role that ideas about masculinity play in the decisions men make about their health care.
Springer said she defines masculinity as a "stereotypical, old-school, John Wayne- and Sylvester Stallone-style" approach to life.
The researchers examined the results of surveys taken in 2004 by 1,000 white, middle-aged men in Wisconsin. The men answered questions about their beliefs regarding masculinity and disclosed whether they'd gotten recommended annual physicals, prostate checks and flu shots.
After adjusting the results to reduce the chance they would be thrown off by such things as a high number of married participants, researchers found that men who were the highest believers in masculine standards were 50 percent less likely to get the recommended care than other men.
Springer was unable to provide statistics about the percentage of men in each group who got the recommended care. Overall, though, fewer than half of all men did, according to the study.
There was one exception to the rule: Blue-collar workers who had a high attachment to masculinity were more likely to get the recommended health care.
The study has limitations. All participants were white, and all had completed high school. And Springer said unanswered questions remain, such as whether spouses play a role through "support or nagging."
The findings were to be presented Monday at the American Sociological Association annual meeting in San Francisco.
Howard S. Friedman, a professor of psychology at the University of California at Riverside, said his research has found that less masculine men live longer than masculine men. But the new study doesn't show anything like that because it doesn't examine long-term effects on health, he said.
As for the gap between men and women when it comes to living longer, he said, "it would be a stretch, going beyond the data, to link it closely to men's increased mortality risk as compared to women."
More information
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on men's health.
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