European Men's Health Forum Stronger than an invasion of armies

Sex matters. Professor Siegfried Meryn introduces the new Journal of Men’s Health and Gender (jmhg), a peer-reviewed publication that aims to ensure that medicine addresses the individual and separate needs of men and women throughout the world.

“An invasion of armies can be resisted, but not an idea whose time has come” Victor Marie Hugo

In their collaboration to launch a new journal ISMH and Elsevier have taken up a gauntlet. One laid down in a report, Exploring the Biological Contributions to Human Health, Does Sex Matter? This report was published in 2001 on behalf of The National Academy of Sciences (USA) by The Institute of Medicine’s Committee on Understanding the Biology of Sex and Gender Differences. It came to the following overreaching conclusions:
- Sex matters
- Every cell has a sex
- The study of sex differences is evolving into a mature science
- Barriers to the advancement of knowledge about sex differences in health and illness exist and must be eliminated.

In its recommendations it encouraged:
- Studies of sex differences from womb to tomb to determine how sex differences influence health, illness and longevity
- Interdisciplinary research through synergy between and among basic scientists, epidemiologists, social scientists, and clinical researchers on sex differences with enhanced collaboration across medical specialties.

The International Society for men's Health and Gender has taken heed with a commitment to provide a venue for the publication of studies on the influence of sex differences. The journal will be a forum for the interdisciplinary pooling of knowledge and feedback among urologist, andrologists and many other specialist disciplines. It will provide general practitioners and family doctors with a single point of easy reference and draw together all initiatives in the different areas relevant to gender medicine.

The women’s movement is 30 years ahead of men. It has produced numerous journals devoted to women’s health. Men’s health issues in the meantime are hardly represented, not least of all in a single multidisciplinary journal.

To quote Donna Stewart who chaired the committee that prepared the Canadian Institute for Health Information Report “The CIHI Report started out as only Women’s Health but the gender comparison revealed new insights into Men’s Health”

“A gender-blind approach to health and healthcare serves neither men nor women well” Donna Stewart

Traditionally the difference between men’s and women’s health problems have been seen as relating to their sexual organs and functions but there is more to it than this. Every cell has a sex. Major studies are now generating increasing evidence on important differences between men and women, from the cellular to the societal level.

“The health of both sexes is influenced by biological factors including, but not confined to, their reproductive characteristics” Lesley Doyal

“Men have higher mortality rates for all 15 leading causes of death” Mathers et al. Lancet (2001)

“Men’s increase in life expectancy still leaves them with a lower life expectancy than that of women 20 years ago” EMHF report on the state of men’s health across 17 European countries

No journal in the US, Europe or anywhere else targets both men’s health and gender-specific medicine. A world journal is urgently needed.

The time is right! The International Society of Men’s Health and Gender (ISMH) and Elsevier are proud to announce the publication of the Journal of Men’s Health and Gender (jmhg), a peer-reviewed journal with the goal to ensure that medicine addresses the individual and separate needs of men and women throughout the world.

Our concept at jmhg is of a journal that is a pleasure to read but nevertheless presents sound scientific research. jmhg has been created to serve many masters. We want to reach and serve general practitioners/family doctors, general internists, urologists and other specialists, indeed the entire spectrum of health professionals, policy makers in public health, men’s health and patient groups, product developers in the pharmaceutical industry and the growing body of informed public. jmhg has been created to do many jobs. It is to be a peer-reviewed source of the latest results of original research publishing editorials, original papers, reviews, and letters to the editor. Journal Watch and Cochrane Corner will provide details of important research in the field published elsewhere thus guaranteeing readers a comprehensive single resource of advances in gender-specific medicine.

Through its Practicing Medicine section jmhg will provide continuing education and an easily accessible resource of the latest knowledge that has been gained from practical clinical application of the research. This section will present a range of theme series in four parts. The first part of each series will be a general introduction to the topic. The subsequent parts appearing in successive issues of the journal will go into detail on specific areas of the topic. In the premier issue the themes are osteoporosis, erectile dysfunction, sexual desire, and effective physician-patient communication. Future series will broaden the scope to such topics as gender-based differences in athletic performance, growing-up and adolescence, genetics and cancer. A beneficial novelty of these educational items is that they will include self-testing modules to obtain CME credits.

But jmhg’s tasks do not end here. We want to provide an interchange of information and debate to bring about innovation in clinical practice. This will not only be achieved through traditional debate articles. It is the reason we have placed emphasis in the Forum section firmly on an exchange of information between all effected parties- medical professionals, men’s health and women’s health organisations, patients and their groups and the pharmaceutical industry- so that the parties can work together with the ultimate aim of bringing about a difference to daily health care and the quality of people’s lives throughout the world.

jmhg has another ambition which is to focus social conscience and political awareness on those elements of society and those parts of the world that are so often forgotten in Western society in which the majority of medical journals are rooted. Wherever possible this focus will be reflected in the scientific and educational sections. In addition jmhg will provoke thought and reflection through its articles from selected celebrities looking ahead and back on men’s health issues and gender medicine and the very special Challenge 21 articles. These unique challenge articles will extend beyond the confines of medical matters to deal with social, political and philosophical issues that face human society.

FAQs

Does jmhg just cover men’s health?
No, its inclusion of gender medicine extends the coverage to women’s health too
Does jmhg just cover older men?
No, jmhg covers the entire human lifespan in men and women
Is ‘gender’ just a polite word for sex?
No, sex is the physical difference between men and women and is influence by genes and biology. Gender is the psychological difference in which environmental, cultural and psychosocial factors have a prominent role.
Is jmhg a scientific or a practical medical journal?
Both, with the motto from Bench to Bedside and Bedside to Bench jmhg emphasises practical relevance based on scientific research
What makes the journal special for practicing physicians?
The journal will include a practicing medicine section providing educational up dates and CME credits.
Is jmhg a European or an American journal?
Neither, jmhg is a world journal, without forgotten continents

We want to create something new, fresh and refreshing. We want your, the readers’, help in doing this. We ask for your suggestions for the type of articles and items you want to read, the topics you wanted covered and the format you prefer. We look forward to receiving your comments.

Siegfried Meryn, M.D is a Professor of Medicine and President of the International Society for Men’s Health and Gender

Please send comments to Professor Meryn at jmhg-me@ismh.org.

If you would like to receive a free subscription to the journal please send your details to h.reiter@ismh.org