Regional Variation in Determinants of Men’s Health

Abstract

This chapter focuses on how countries in South, Central, and North America differ in social, behavioral, and medical processes that are relevant to gender health disparities and men's health. It shows that neither the pattern of health disparities nor the mechanism behind gender gaps in health is constant across countries. The chapter explores the policies and programs that address country, context, place, and population variations, rather than universal interventions. It discusses the universal programs that focus on reducing the gender disparities in drinking and smoking, and on reducing the gender gap in prevalence of cardiovascular disease across all settings. The chapter also explores between-country variations in social, behavioral, and medical determinants of men's health. The complexities of health across domains extend to health behaviors, and these behaviors vary across countries. Gender differences in determinants of health are rules rather than exceptions.