University College London (UCL) has announced the establishment of a new Centre for Gender and Health. The Centre comprises a multidisciplinary team that conducts research and works alongside policy-makers and policy-influencers to address the complex relationships between gender norms and health status.The Centre will be launched at a one-day free-to-attend event on 16 February. A place can be booked here. GAMH has contacted the Centre to discuss possible areas of collaboration.

The neglect of men's reproductive health topics during the training of medical professionals results in a clear gap in their training, according to an article in the journal Fertility and Sterility. The authors argue that medical students 'should be provided with an undergraduate education that will enable them to be both comfortable and competent in discussing and providing men's reproductive health care. By increasing these future physicians' exposure to men's reproductive concerns, the next generation of providers will be better equipped to address their patients' needs and close gaps in reproductive care. In the end, the enhanced health care that results will be of benefit to male and female patients alike.' 

Also on the sexual health theme, a new study has identified barriers to sexual health among male teens and young men in Baltimore. Many young men said that, in the absence of physical symptoms, they saw no reason to seek care or they feared results of a positive test for an STI. Some young men, especially adolescents, did not always know where to go for sexual and reproductive health care and reported relying on their friends. Some participants also discussed needing greater self-confidence when asking and answering questions about their health in general, especially about their sexual health. Long wait times at clinics, costs and concerns about privacy also emerged as deterrents to seeking sexual and reproductive health care, in addition to the stigma of being seen at certain types of clinics (e.g., STI clinics).

Turning to men's mental health, a systematic review and meta-analysis of differences in the expression of symptoms in men versus women with depression has been published in the Havard Review of Psychiaty. The authors found  a small, significant association of gender with some symptoms. Depressed men reported alcohol/drug misuse and risk taking/poor impulse control at a greater frequency and intensity than depressed women. Depressed women reported symptoms at a higher frequency and intensity that are included as diagnostic criteria for depression such as depressed mood, appetite disturbance/weight change, and sleep disturbance.

Support networks for fathers can lead to positive improvements in relationships between dads and their children if they allow the men themselves to co-lead the group within their community, according to new research from Leeds Beckett University.

An Australian study of of masculinity and suicide suggests that one particular element of dominant masculinity - being self-reliant - may place men at increased risk of suicidal thinking. 

And from Canada there is evidence that targeted community-based programmes can advance the mental health of vulnerable subgroups of men, including gay men and veterans. 

Also from Canada, a study of masculinities and participation in Men's Sheds suggests that although the men studied 'tended to promote hegemonic masculinity practices [they] also demonstrated that counternarratives and practices can be, and indeed are, welcomed once relationships and trust have been established.' The authors suggest that 'explicit ownership and promotion on nondominant views of masculinity could be helpful in opening up the Men's Sheds movement to a broader and more diverse group of men moving forward.'

Finally, BMJ Global Health has published a letter from GAMH Director Peter Baker in response to an article on women's health. Peter commented: 'There should not be a competition between the advocates of men's health and those of women's health to demonstrate which sex is worse off or to grab resources from each other. This must not be a zero sum game. We need action, gendered as and when appropriate, to improve the health of both sexes. Without such an approach, the SDG targets, amongst others, will be far harder to achieve.'