Health Flavour of the Month: November
Every month there is a range of national health promotion campaigns in the UK. In November there are initiatives for many major health promotion areas. Some of these run for the whole month, some are week long initiatives and some stand out for one day. Here is a synopsis of the campaigns should you want to learn more or join in:
- Movember: Movember started in 2004 and the focus then was on prostate cancer. The brief has now widened to focus on men’s health in general. The movement particularly emphasises the high death rate amongst men due to suicide. It is also associated with fundraising by growing a moustache. You can now get involved through other events and initiatives, which is a good thing because some of us really struggle to grow moustaches but would still want to show our support!
- Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month: this campaign aims to raise awareness of the symptoms of pancreatic cancer which are often vague and missed by sufferers until it is too late. More than half the people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer die within 3 months of diagnosis. World Pancreatic Cancer Day is 18 November.
- Mouth Cancer Action Month: this initiative is promoted by the dental professional community in the UK. The aim is to encourage people to check their mouth for signs of mouth cancer. The highlight of the month is Blue Wednesday on 17 November.
- International Stress Awareness Week runs between 01-05 November. It is sponsored by the International Stress Awareness Association. There is an online Global Summit organised across the week for this year. They have some interesting events. Professor Sir Cary Cooper, renowned expert on workplace stress, is one of the speakers, as is the well-known TV doctor, Michael Mosely. Follow the link to join up! In the UK, Wednesday, 06 November is National Stress Awareness Day. Follow the link to find out more.
- Social Media Kindness Day, 09 November: this initiative started as an international movement. In the UK, it held on this day in memory of the TV presenter Caroline Flack; this day was her birthday. Caroline took her own life and social media pressure has been highlighted as a major factor in leading her to do this.
- World Kindness Day, 13 November: promoted in the UK by Kindness UK, this is part of an international movement. It is a day to celebrate and promote kindness in all its forms.
- World Diabetes Day, 14 November: in 2021, Diabetes UK is celebrating 100 years since the discovery of the development of insulin as a treatment for diabetes.
- Anti-Bullying Week is sponsored by the Anti-Bullying Alliance and runs between 15-19 November. Their specific fund raising day is 15 November – Odd Socks Day. The theme for this year is One Kind Word.
- Alcohol Awareness Week runs between 15-21 November. This is promoted by the charity Alcohol Change UK. The theme this year is Alcohol and Relationships. Their website has many interesting and thought-provoking factsheets on the physical and mental health effects of high alcohol consumption
- Road Safety Week, 15-21 November: this initiative is promoted by Brake UK
- World COPD Day, 18 November: COPD stands for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. It is promoted in the UK by the British Lung Foundation. The theme this year is to support people to look after their lungs and live well with COPD.
- The Campaign of 16 Days of Action Against Domestic Violence starts on 25 November. It is supported by Public Health England. The theme this year is ‘What is Emotional Abuse?’ Access the website above for information on the various topics within this area of abuse.
- Carers Rights Day, 25 November: promoted by Carers UK, the theme this year is raising the awareness on the rights of unpaid carers.