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With June being Men’s Health Month, a Naturopathic Doctor from London, Ontario is providing some tips for taking better care of men’s physical, mental, and emotional health.

Dr. Ashten Buck says, as many know, there is an unhelpful stigma around men’s health.

“Talking about our feelings is something that has been stigmatized for men that they don’t like to do. But, if we can do it in a way that makes sense physically by putting a physical aspect around it, then it doesn’t feel as vulnerable.”

She adds that the spotlight on men’s health usually highlights testosterone and going to the gym, resulting in other aspects getting overlooked. These include cholesterol, metabolism, insulin resistance, and hair loss, which can actually be caused by high testosterone levels.

“Stress is also a really big component in the fair follicle as well, because if your stress levels are high, that weakens the hair follicle, and that may cause even more thinning.”

Buck says sleep, stress, diet, and habits are the foundation of a person’s health, with a particular emphasis on sleep, especially for men.

“If there’s a sleep issue, if you’re waking multiple times throughout the night or have trouble falling asleep, if we’re not getting into that deep sleep, then growth hormone isn’t getting secreted as often, and that is what’s contributing to testosterone function.”

She adds that heightened stress levels can lead to disrupted sleep, but cortisol can be metabolized by B vitamins, zinc, and magnesium.

Buck adds that a lack of the right vitamins and minerals can also lead to symptoms of anxiety or depression, but so can hormones, gut health, and toxic situations.

To men everywhere, Dr. Buck says “I want you to go to your practitioner and express your concerns. Because even though you feel like they aren’t significant enough to yield anything, we want you to be optimal,” she explains. “Just go and look, because a lot of people don’t even look. They’re too scared to look.”