Better health and ageing for all Australians

National Male Health

Research and Information

Building a strong evidence base on male health is a priority area identified in the National Male Health Policy to inform policies, programs and initiatives.

In this section:


Australian Longitudinal Study on Male Health

The Australian Longitudinal Study on Male Health (also known as the Ten to Men Study) stems from the fifth priority area of the National Male Health Policy (the Policy) which focuses on building a strong evidence base in male health. The Study will inform policies, programs and initiatives that promote health and support to males.

The University of Melbourne School of Population and Global Health is undertaking the design, establishment and implementation of Wave 1 of the Ten to Men Study. The objectives and outcomes of the Study are to provide a national longitudinal population based study which aims to:
  • Examine male health and its determinants including the social, economic, environmental and behavioural factors that affect the length and quality of life.
  • Address a range of key research questions about the health of Australian males including their health behaviours and risk factors, key life transition points, social and economic environments in which they work and live together with their health and other service use.
  • Identify policy opportunities for improving the health and wellbeing of Australian males and providing support for males at key life stages, particularly those at risk of poor health.
The Ten to Men Study will examine the health and lifestyles of Australian males aged 10 to 55 across three age groups: boys aged 10 to 14 years; adolescent males aged 15-17 years and adult males aged 18 to 55 years. Parents of boys aged 10 to 14 years will also be surveyed.

The Study will be conducted in a way that:
  • Examines the social, psychological, biological and environmental determinants of good health in males; including possible causal links between the health of males and these determinants.
  • Advances understanding of the factors that enhance or inhibit good physical and mental health for males with particular focus on gaps in existing knowledge.
  • Documents health service usage through participant self report and through linkage with the Medicare Benefits Schedule and Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme/Repatriation Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme data sets and other relevant health data sets over time.
  • Includes a focus on life stages and key life transition points/events.
  • Examines the social determinants of health such as socio-economic status, education, employment, income, location, cultural background and social support; and examine how these determinants may impact on males’ physical and mental health.
  • Considers the impact of sex, gender and age on males’ attitudes towards their health, health behaviours, including help seeking and health outcomes.
  • Includes a focus on intergenerational difference and exploration of whether the nature of social, economic, environmental and technological change since the birth of older males in the Study has resulted in different age groups effectively living their lives within different social contexts with distinctive health impacts.
  • Assesses the impact of changes in health policy and practice on the health of Australian males.
Infrastructure and governance arrangements for the Ten to Men study are fully established and the survey instruments for the three age groups have been developed and trialled. The Pilot Studies were completed in early 2013 and interviewing of boys aged 10 to 14 years and surveying of adolescent and adult males will commence in mid 2013.

The Ten to Men Study will complement existing longitudinal studies occurring in Australia including the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health which has been collecting information on Australian women since 1995 and the Longitudinal Study on Australian Children which commenced in 2004.
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Australian Institute of Health and Welfare: male health bulletins

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare is a major national agency set up by the Australian Government to provide reliable, regular and relevant information and statistics on Australia's health and welfare.

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare is drawing on a wide range of reliable national data sources to present a ‘snapshot’ of the health and wellbeing of Australian males. A suite of male health bulletins will be published to provide up-to-date data for health professionals, academics, program designers/policy makers, key stakeholders and the general public.

The Health of Australia's Males, the first in the series of male health bulletins, examines attitudes to health issues, rates of injury, illness and mortality and use of health services among Australian males. It provides a summary of the health and wellbeing of the Australian male population by outlining the lifestyle factors influencing male health, the health status of Australian males and access to health services. Some key findings outlined in The Health of Australia’s Males include:
  • Males born between 2007-2009 can expect to live 24 years longer than males born between 1901-1910.
  • In 2007-08, around two-thirds of adult males (aged 18 years or over) and one-quarter (aged 5-17 years) were overweight or obese.
  • In 2007, nearly half of males aged 16–85 years had experienced a mental health disorder in their lifetime. This includes males with anxiety, affective and/or substance use disorders.
  • In 2009, nearly one-fifth of Australian males had a disability. This includes males with a mild to profound core activity limitation, school or employment restriction or with a non-specific limitation or restriction.
  • In 2007–08, nearly one-third of males had a chronic health condition. This includes males with asthma, arthritis, cancer, diabetes, heart and circulatory diseases or osteoporosis.
  • In 2008–09, 16% of males did not use any Medicare services.
A summary Report Profile has also been released.

The Health of Australia’s Males: A focus on five population groups is the second in the series of male health bulletins. It examines the distinct health profiles of five male population groups at risk of poor health: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males, males living in regional and remote areas, males living in socioeconomically disadvantaged areas, males born overseas and older males. This bulletin is structured to present a separate chapter for each specific population group and provides information on demographic and socioeconomic characteristics, lifestyle factors, health status and health service use.

Key findings from the second male health bulletin include:
  • Older males (aged 65 and over) are living longer than ever before, and generally have fewer risk factors such as obesity and tobacco smoking than younger males. As age increases, there are some risk factors and health conditions that also increase. In 2007-08, males aged 65 and over were more likely to be physically inactive than younger males and the rate of physical inactivity increased with age.
  • In 2005-2007, male Indigenous life expectancy at birth was expected to be 67.2 years (11.5 years less than for non-Indigenous males).
  • Males born overseas generally enjoy better health than other males. In 2005-2007, males born overseas had higher mortality from lung cancer (5% higher) and diabetes (10% higher).
  • In 2007-2008, males living in the most socioeconomically disadvantaged areas were nearly twice as likely to be obese than those in the least disadvantaged areas.
  • In 2005-2007, compared with males living in major cities, those living in remote areas were around twice as likely to die from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diabetes and suicide.
How can copies of the bulletins be accessed ?

Copies of the bulletins can be ordered free of charge from National Mailing and Marketing, via email at: NMM at National Mailing

Please quote item numbers when ordering from National Mailing and Marketing. They are:

RG0017 - The Health of Australia’s Males (bulletin 1)
RG0013 – The Health of Australia’s Males – Report Profile
RG0030 – The Health of Australia’s Males: a focus on five population groups (bulletin 2)

A summary Report Profile has also been released for bulletin 2 and can be downloaded from the AIHW website

Both bulletins and report profiles may be downloaded from the AIHW website at: AIHW website