November has begun, officially kicking off Movember, a charity campaign in which millions of men worldwide grow moustaches to raise awareness and funds for men’s health issues, primarily prostate cancer. Participants, known as either a mo bro or a mo sista, register on the campaign’s website and seek sponsorships for the month, while growing a moustache.
The rules of the month are humorously shared on the campaign’s website:
- Once registered at movemeber.com, each mo bro must being the 1st of November with a clean shaven face.
- For the entire month of Movember each mo bro must grow and groom a moustache.
- There is to be no joining of the mo to your side burns. (That’s considered a beard)
- There is to be no joining of the handlebars to your chin. (That’s considered a goatee)
- Each mo bro must conduct himself like that of a true country gentleman.
The campaign is global and has its foundations in Melbourne, Australia. Though whimsical in nature, Movember has been influential in raising attention and funding for important issues. Last year, 64,927 Americans raised $7.5 million for The Prostate Cancer Foundation and LIVESTRONG.
"It's hard to believe what began as a bit of a joke has turned into a global movement for men's health,” says Adam Garone, Movember CEO and Co-Founder. “It's humbling to see so many men and women passionately support this cause. These days you can't grow a moustache without people asking what's going on, leading to amazing conversations about cancers that affect men,”
The organizers of this year’s Movember share the following facts about men’s health:
- In 2011, more than 240,000 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer
- In 2011, more than 33,000 men will die from prostate cancer
- One new prostate cancer case occurs every 2.2 minutes
- A man dies from prostate cancer every 15.6 minutes
- Prostate cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in men
- 1 in 6 men will be diagnosed
- 1 in 2 men will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime, 1 in 3 women will be.
- 48% of testicular cancer cases occur in men between the ages of 20 and 34.
- An estimated 8.7 million adult men over the age of 20 in the US have diabetes- and a third do not know it.
- Approximately 50 million men and women in the US have high blood pressure- almost 30 per cent of them do not know it.
Make this November matter for you and the men in your life. Join the Movember campaign or simply spend some time better educating yourself on men’s health issues. Speak to one of our team members at Push Pedal Pull if you’d like ideas of how to increase your fitness.