Educating boys about their health

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Parents really need to educate their sons about their health. Boys don't get annual physical exams like girls do, who learn that annual exams and taking care of their bodies are just part of being a woman. And instead of educating boys, too often we dismiss their unhealthy, riskier behavior with boys will be boys, which only reinforces the unhealthy aspects of masculinity. And because we don't educate our sons they are less knowledgeable about their health. The problem with this is that the people with the least amount of health knowledge oftentimes also have the greatest health risks. So it is important that we talk to our sons about their health and teach them about their risks. And when teaching boys, especially older boys, about their specific risks, a good strategy is high information low pressure. What that means is lots of information, but don't pressure them. And don't nag them.

Video Categories: ALL PARENTS, Family Life, Gender Differences, TEEN, Health and Development

Will Courtenay, PhD Psychotherapist, shares advice for parents on the importance of educating boys about their health and how to establish a good health strategy with them

Transcript

Expert Bio

Will Courtenay, PhD

Psychotherapist

Dr. Will Courtenay, “The Men’s Doc,” is an internationally recognized expert in helping boys, men and fathers, and a psychotherapist, consultant, distinguished author, researcher, keynote speaker, radio host, and consultant to and speaker at schools and universities. His new book is titled Dying To Be Men. The American Psychological Association calls him, “a leading psychologist in the field of masculinity” and Who’s Who in America calls him a “foremost achiever in his field.” As one of the world’s leading innovators in the health of boys and men, he has a documented history of success in shaping and promoting this new field, as well as new perspectives on fatherhood, boyhood, and masculinity. Dr. Courtenay received his PhD from the University of California at Berkeley and has served on the clinical faculty in the Department of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and the University of California, San Francisco, Medical School. He is the Founding Editor of the International Journal of Men's Health. Dr. Courtenay is a powerful, effective voice about boys and men, heard nationally on radio and television – including CNN, Good Morning America, World News, Fox News, ABC News, NBC News – and seen in print – including NY Times, LA Times, Wall Street Journal, U.S. News & World Report, NPR, Newsweek, USA Today, and Chicago Tribune. Dr. Courtenay is a contributor to Esquire Magazine.