Gay Men's Health - Spanning the Life Course

As we move away from the sexual behavior-centered "crisis" mentality of the 80s and 90s and towards the reality where most gay men do grow older, we need to sharpen our focus.

by Michael Cook
President and CEO
Howard Brown Health Center

The health needs of gay, bisexual, and transgender (“GBT”) men are every bit as diverse as our community as a whole. Any health agenda that does not account for this diversity would be greatly amiss. At Howard Brown Health Center, we see gay men's health as an issue that spans the life course. Often, stages during one’s life dictate integrated health needs better than focusing simply on preferred sexual positioning or ethnicity - though, those do come into play, as well. Especially, as we move away from the sexual behavior-centered "crisis" mentality of the 80s and 90s and towards the reality where most gay men do grow older, we need to sharpen our focus.

A 2009 Gay Men's Health Agenda should call for organizations and governmental agencies to view being a GBT man not as a homogenous identity. Health messages will differ amongst age groups, as will health concerns, and our healthcare system and programs must differ to meet those needs, from coming-out to Medicare. What do we accomplish if we stop concentrating on how to help people be healthy once they've passed their mid-twenties or contracted HIV? Many of us have found that our definition of health may change as we age, but, throughout the life course, there is always something that we can do to promote our own well-being.

When talking about our health, the focus typically drifts to concerns related to our sexuality.

One of the most influential behaviors for positively affecting gay men's health is adopting or maintaining an active lifestyle. Being active can prevent or treat cardio-vascular health issues, obesity, cancer, and depression, all of which have a substantial impact on the personal health of GBT men. Yet, when talking about our health, the focus typically drifts to concerns related to our sexuality. Living an active lifestyle can include actions like exercising, getting out and participating in your community, volunteering, finding an active spirituality, and socializing. These important, and often overlooked, behaviors help GBT men to live longer lives with an enhanced quality of life. Additionally, we understand that there are numerous factors that influence HIV incidence beyond sexual behaviors, such as substance abuse, mental health disorders, and experienced domestic or social violence. Living an active life (physically, socially, and spiritually) will work against the many factors that lead to new HIV infections in the GBT population.

A national office of LGBT Health, created within the Department of Health and Human Services, could provide national leadership.

Integrated health and wellness concepts will always remain constant (good nutrition, physical activity, reducing risk with sexual behaviors, moderation, etc.). As with the above example, the importance of exercise and a nutritional diet, while crucial in developmental and younger years, is just as important in elder years where it significantly benefits cardiovascular and mental health. The intricacies of the messages and programs need to be adjusted to make them age- and ability-appropriate. Those of us doing prevention and treatment work on a local level would benefit from national leadership that provided best practices around life course health issues. A national office of LGBT Health, created within the Department of Health and Human Services, could provide this national leadership in promoting and identifying more in-depth age appropriate programs for all LGBT people.

A focus should be put on social wellness

Lastly, with integrated health, a focus should be put on social wellness. Throughout our lives, we seek to connect with others in meaningful ways. For some of us, creating a social network of support may mean relying on blood relatives. For others, it may mean creating our own family of close friends and loved-ones. However, a phenomenon that is common-place in heterosexual socialization that is lacking considerably in LGBT socialization is positive inter-generational relationships. Programs that facilitate mentoring and affirmative relations between generations provide opportunities for individual support, a shared history, and increased community organization.

[Click here to read previous input into the 2009 Gay Men's Health Agenda. Please feel free to comment there - or you could send in a full post of your own here. We will be happy to publish it! The feedback we receive will be featured in the closing plenary of the upcoming National Gay Men's Health Summit and will be a means of moving the community forward in the new year around issues that are important to all of us.]