Manosphere, tobacco and gambling are driving avoidable harm and premature deaths among men, studies find
Men experience poorer health and die younger than women in most parts of the world
- Men experience poorer health and die younger than women in most parts of the world, with disadvantaged groups facing particularly stark inequalities
- Commercial industries, structural inequalities and gaps in public policy contribute to preventable illness, injury and premature death among men, with consequences for families and communities
- Experts call for coordinated, sustained global action on men’s health, without detracting from efforts to tackle women’s oppression
Men are suffering poor health and dying younger while the companies that profit from their misery are turning over billions of dollars.
This is the stark warning from new research exploring men’s health around the world, which found the gap in life expectancy between men and women is disproportionately widening among disadvantaged, ethnic minority, and lower-socioeconomic populations.
The landmark series of papers, published in the medical journal The Lancet, shines a light on the varied burden of illness and injury among diverse groups of men, and explores some of the drivers of those burdens.
Led by researchers at the University of Sheffield, the series explores the causes of this disparity, including how the alcohol, tobacco and sports betting industries prey on men, while gaps in public policy and support services have allowed harmful influences, including extremist online "manosphere" culture, to grow unchecked.
The research revealed:
- Disproportionate smoking rates among men generated $55 billion in pre-tax profits for six major tobacco companies in a single year, while tobacco caused over 20 per cent of male deaths over age 30 in high-prevalence regions.
- In the UK, low-grade civil servants experience a physical-age health decline gap equivalent to eight years post-retirement compared to high-grade peers, while in India, men from oppressed castes face a life expectancy of 60 years compared to 66 years for upper-caste men.
- In the US, nearly 50 per cent of men aged 18–49 use online sports betting. Legalisation of sports betting has led to a tenfold surge in sportsbook spending and elevated credit delinquency among young and disadvantaged men.
- Men account for 90 per cent of the world's 11.5 million prisoners, suffering elevated rates of mental health disorders and chronic illness. In high-income countries, nine per cent of male prisoners attempt suicide, with post-release mortality spiking due to overdose, suicide, and cardiovascular events
The studies, led by Professor Jim Catto, Professor of Urology at the University of Sheffield’s School of Medicine and Population Health, call for the global roll out of national men’s health strategies to tackle these issues.
While countries like Ireland (2008) and England (2025) have introduced national men's health strategies, global implementation remains sparse, severely underfunded, and heavily focused on individual behavior rather than systemic drivers such as racism, poverty, and class inequality.
Professor Jim Catto, from the University of Sheffield’s School of Medicine and Population Health, said: “Closing the gaps in men’s health policy stops the growth of damaging industries and doesn’t take away from women. In fact, it paves the way for health equity for all.
“International agencies, governments, and health organisations must collect better data on marginalised men, secure stable long-term funding, and foster positive masculinity to create better health policies for men.”