The Dr. Jules Plant-Based Podcast
Hey, I’m Dr. Jules! I’m a medical doctor, teacher, nutritionist, naturopath, plant-based dad and 3X world championships qualified athlete. On this podcast we’ll discuss the latest in evidence-based and plant-based nutrition, including common nutrition myths, FAQs and tips on how to transition towards a healthier dietary pattern and lifestyle that creates little friction with your busy life!
The Dr. Jules Plant-Based Podcast
Why Real Men Get Checkups: A Guide to Preventative Health
Death doesn't wait for symptoms, and neither should you. This eye-opening episode tackles the critical yet often avoided topic of men's health during Men's Health Month.
Did you know men are 24% less likely than women to have seen a doctor in the past year? The statistics are alarming, but there's hope. Whether you identify as male or simply care about the men in your life, this conversation could literally save lives. Dr. Jules dives deep into why men avoid healthcare (hint: it's not laziness) and how cultural messaging about "toughness" and "manning up" contributes to shorter male lifespans.
The episode delivers a comprehensive breakdown of the top three killers of men - heart disease, cancer, and strokes - with practical strategies for prevention. Rather than vague advice, Dr. Jules provides age-specific screening recommendations from your 20s through your 60s and beyond. Through compelling real patient stories, including a 52-year-old man who was a "walking time bomb" despite feeling fine and a 59-year-old whose delayed colonoscopy led to advanced cancer, the message becomes clear: waiting for symptoms can be deadly.
What makes this conversation especially powerful is its framing of men's health as a family issue. Women, who make up over 80% of the podcast's audience and often serve as family health coordinators, receive practical guidance on supporting the men they love. The episode concludes with a profound reminder that prevention isn't just about extending life, but enriching it. Share this episode with someone you care about—it might be the nudge they need to make that appointment they've been avoiding.
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Peace, love, plants!
Dr. Jules
Hey everyone, welcome to Season 2 of the Dr Jules Plant-Based Podcast, where we discuss everything from plant-based nutrition to the main pillars of lifestyle medicine. Yo, plant-based buddies, welcome back to another episode of the podcast. Today's episode is very near and dear to my heart and may actually save a life, maybe yours or maybe someone you love. At the time of recording it's June, and that means it's Men's Health Month, a time to shine a light on some hard truths about men's health. Now, did you know that men are 24% less likely than women to have seen a doctor in the past year? They're much less likely to get a checkup to talk about their symptoms and, unfortunately, they're more likely to die younger. That's the reality, but it doesn't have to be so. Whether you're a man listening in or a woman who cares deeply about the men in your life, this episode is for you. We'll talk about the top health risks that men faced and, more importantly, what to do about it. What to do about it Now? Let's start by reviewing why men simply don't go to see doctors. Why are so many men skipping checkups, ignoring symptoms and avoiding us? Well, typically it's not because they're lazy or careless. It's because many of the men that I know, and I as well, were taught that being a man means you're being tough and you're not vulnerable, and asking for help is weakness and we should just walk it off or wait it out or man up. But the truth is that real strength is knowing when to ask for help. Now, over 80% of my followers are women, and they're actually typically the health leaders of their families. They're the ones who are booking dental cleanings or prepping lunches or noticing when something's off. So today I'm calling on both men and women to be a part of the conversation, because men's health is a family issue.
Speaker 1:Now, the top three killers of men today are heart disease, cancer and strokes, so let's talk about what we can do about them Now. Heart disease is still the number one cause of death in men worldwide, but it's largely preventable. Typically, if we would simply eat more fiber-rich, whole-plant foods and cut back on saturated fat and ultra-processed junk, we'd move our body daily, whether it's walking, biking, lifting or hiking or anything and we learn to manage stress, we probably avoid most cases of heart disease. Your heart isn't just a pump. It's actually a reflection of how you live, and through plant-predominant nutrition and exercise, we lower blood pressure, lower our blood sugar, lower our cholesterol and we lower the main risk factors that cause heart disease.
Speaker 1:The second top killer is cancer, especially prostate, lung cancer and colorectal cancer. You can't prevent everything, but you can get screened at the right time. You can do what you can with your lifestyle to reduce the risk of getting diagnosed with these cancers. You'll quickly notice that the same lifestyle interventions that reduce heart disease also reduce cancer Eating a plant-predominant diet, keeping a healthy weight, managing stress, sleeping all things that are known to reduce rates of cancer and heart disease exponentially more than other interventions. Don't wait until you're symptomatic, because by then it's often too late. Because if you wait for colon cancer to be symptomatic, that means it has progressed enough to invade the abdominal cavity to an extent where you're probably already having a cancer that has spread to other organs.
Speaker 1:And another top killer in men are strokes. Now, strokes are often tied to silent issues like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, high blood sugar, and most people feel fine until suddenly they don't. Now we can prevent stroke by prioritizing sleep, managing stress, eating whole foods, moving your body and checking your blood pressure regularly. It's about catching problems before they become a crisis, and we know that screening saves lives, so you need to know what tests to ask for. So when men say I feel fine, why should I go to the doctor? Here's the thing Many deadly conditions will show no symptoms in their early stages. So let's walk through what screening actually means and which screening tests you should consider by age so you can stay ahead of the game.
Speaker 1:Now in young adulthood, like in your 20s and 30s, it's all about preventing and baseline tracking. So you would want to have a look at your blood pressure every one to two years, maybe check your cholesterol levels once in your 20s, just to make sure that you do not have hypercholesterolemia that is impacted by genetics, and then, if it's good, maybe every five years, you want to have a baseline look at your blood sugar or your A1c, which is an average of your blood sugar over the last three or four months, especially if you have a family history and depending on your risk, you should maybe get screened for sexually transmitted infections, maybe a mental health check-in or even a skin check if you are seeing new or changing moles. Now, most guys in this age group are not going to the doctor unless something is broken. But don't wait. The goal is to build a solid relationship with your healthcare team, that you know how to navigate the system and you kind of know what to look for when going into your 30s and in your 40s, because in your 40s that's when health risks start to sneak up. You should be looking at your blood pressure annually, maybe even considering blood work, depending on if you're overweight or if you exercise. If there's family history, you maybe want to start discussing prostate health and colorectal cancer screening. Some guidelines now say to start even in your 40s. At age 45, if you have a family history, you should maybe have a cardiac risk assessment if you smoke or if you have high cholesterol, and definitely talk about your mental health and your sleep with your healthcare practitioner.
Speaker 1:Now, in your 50s and beyond, that's when things usually start to go wrong. That's usually when you start having either symptoms or signs yourself and, if not, that's when your friends are starting to get diagnosed with conditions like heart disease, cancer, and by this age you've likely seen it happen in your family, in your parents or uncles. That's when we need to have a good, good baseline evaluation done and to really measure what kind of health risks you currently have and to build a game plan on where we should intervene first. Now, in your 50s and beyond, you really want to consider testing for colorectal cancer. Screening tests like colonoscopy or FIT testing can be done by your doctor and then you'll determine what's the good frequency of these testing. Typically, depending on whether you have polyps or a family history, your colonoscopy might be every three to five years, and if you have no polyps at all, maybe they're going to be done every 10 years. And fit testing? In New Brunswick we have a special program which the government sends you the kit through the mail if you have a valid Medicare card every two years. So colon cancer can really be screened before it causes problems, because it could take sometimes five, seven, ten years for a polyp to become precancerous and then cancer, and so the polyp gives us the time to screen it. Colon cancer really really lets us diagnose it in early stages.
Speaker 1:I'd also recommend having a conversation with your doctor about getting tested for prostate cancer. Psa testing does have pros and cons, false positives, but is the only test that we have to reliably screen for prostate cancer. If you've ever smoked, maybe have a conversation about lung cancer screening. There are tests such as x-rays or low-dose CT scans that can be done. If you have a family history, you might want to consider talking about bone density, about your vision, about your hearing, and you always want to make sure to stay current with vaccines like shingles and pneumonia, considering flu shots and COVID vaccines. But it's important to remember that not every test or every vaccine is right for everyone. Work with your doctor to make sure that we can set you on a path that's right for you.
Speaker 1:Now, if you're a man listening to this, I want to say something very clearly you matter. You matter to a lot of people, and not just when something goes wrong. Your family needs you, your body needs you, your kids need you, but you don't have to wait until you're sick to start taking care of yourself. Real men don't wait for symptoms. They don't ignore their health. Real men get checkups it's not weakness, it's wisdom and start small Talk to your doctor. Go for a walk, cook a healthy meal and make that appointment that you've been avoiding. Go for a walk, cook a healthy meal and make that appointment that you've been avoiding.
Speaker 1:Prevention is not just about adding years to your life, but about adding life to your years and to the woman that's listening today. Let's be honest. You often see these things first. You notice them all. You hear the snoring and you feel that fatigue before he even admits it. So here's your reminder Forward this episode or share it with the men you love. Help him book that checkup, cook that first plant-based dinner and maybe go for a walk together. Men's health is not just his problem. It's a family's opportunity to talk about health, and you could be the reason he takes that first step. And when it comes to men's health, the main takeaways are that most of the leading causes of death in men are preventable and lifestyle medicine works, and screenings do save lives, and changing is possible at any age, no matter how stubborn we can be. Sometimes it's important to break the silence, and that's why Men's Health Month is such an important month to talk about. It's time that we shatter the stigma and we start a conversation that could change someone's life.
Speaker 1:Now, when I think about men's health, I immediately go back to thinking about cases that I've been confronted with throughout my years. I remember a 52-year-old man that came to see me only because his wife made the appointment. He felt fine no chest pain, no big red flags, just a bit more tired than usual. His blood work, had an LDL cholesterol that was through the roof. His blood pressure was like 160 over 100. I sent him to a cardiologist. His stress test was abnormal and when we referred him for further testing he had narrowings in three major coronary arteries. He was basically a walking time bomb and he had no idea. We got him on medication, changed his diet, helped him start walking every morning with his wife on medication, changed his diet helped him start walking every morning with his wife and six months later his numbers are down, his energy's up, and that checkup may have saved his life.
Speaker 1:I can also reflect back on that 59-year-old man who came in after months of rectal bleeding. He said oh, I figured it was just my hemorrhoids. He had never had a colonoscopy. We sent him for testing. It was stage 3 colorectal cancer. Treatment was aggressive. He fought hard but he told me with tears in his eyes I wish I had come in sooner. I thought I had more time Now. If that patient had consulted in his 40s or 50s and gotten on a regular, routine colon cancer screenings, we could have caught it early, maybe even prevented it.
Speaker 1:Now the typical risk factor that goes without being noticed is hypertension, high blood pressure. Recently I saw a 38-year-old guy. He was fit, muscular, he loved the gym. He said I don't need a doctor, I eat clean and I train hard. He hadn't checked his blood pressure in years and when he finally did, it was 170 over 110. He was shocked, and I was too and turns out that his dad died of a stroke at age 50. We made some evidence-based recommendations for lifestyle interventions. We started him on treatment, got his stress under control and guess what? He's still lifting weights, but now with a normal blood pressure and an awareness that we are growing older and risk factors can hit people even with the best of intentions.
Speaker 1:Now, fit doesn't always mean healthy and you can't see blood pressure in a mirror. Healthy, and you can't see blood pressure in a mirror. If you've been waiting and delaying and telling yourself that it's not that bad. Hopefully these stories are your wake-up call. You don't need to wait for symptoms. You don't need to wait for pain. You just need to start. Real families help each other, stay well and real men get checkups. Let's normalize that right on. I hope you've enjoyed this episode. Share it with the men you care about and make sure that they take care of themselves right on. You have an awesome day. Thanks for tuning in. We'll see you in the next episode, peace. And make sure that they take care of themselves Right on. You have an awesome day. Thanks for tuning in. We'll see you in the next episode, peace. Hey, everyone, go check out my website plantbaseddoctorjulescom to find free downloadable resources and remember that you can find me on Facebook and Instagram at Dr Jules Cormier, and on YouTube at Plant Based Dr Jules.
