Men’s health extends far beyond the occasional doctor visit when something hurts. Yet many men approach healthcare reactively, waiting until a health crisis forces them to see a doctor rather than embracing preventive care as a lifelong habit. This approach costs lives, allows preventable conditions to progress into serious diseases, and misses crucial opportunities for early intervention. For men of all ages, understanding why primary care matters and what screenings deserve priority can fundamentally change health outcomes across the lifespan.

Jason A. Boothe, MD, CAQSM, AT-R, is a family medicine physician and primary care sports medicine specialist at Tryon Medical Partners in Huntersville. His diverse patient population, ranging from young teenagers to elderly adults, gives him a unique perspective on men’s health needs across different life stages, and his commitment to preventive care emphasizes why building a long-term relationship with a primary care clinician matters so much.

Why primary care matters for men at every life stage

The importance of regular primary care visits changes as men move through different phases of life, but the need remains constant from adolescence through advanced age.

• Young Men 18-39: Getting in the habit. “For young men and boys younger than 18, it’s very important they get in the habit of seeing a primary care clinician,” Dr. Boothe emphasizes. “They often learn from watching their father. I advise adult male patients to come in with their sons so they can understand that coming to a doctor is not something they do when there’s an issue, but something they should do routinely.” This intergenerational approach sets the foundation for consistent health habits. When young men see their fathers engaging in preventive care, they internalize the message that doctor visits are  normal, not something to fear or avoid. 
• Middle Adulthood: Screening and prevention. As men enter their middle years, health priorities shift. “As men get a bit older, we turn our attention to cancer and heart disease prevention and screening,” Dr. Boothe explains. These screenings identify risk factors before they become serious diseases, providing opportunities to intervene through lifestyle modification and/or medications before a heart attack, stroke, or cancer diagnosis occurs.
• Advanced age: Focusing on healthspan and longevity. For older men, screenings become even more critical. Prevention transitions into the early detection of conditions that become increasingly common with age. This early detection allows men to maintain independence, quality of life, and longevity. Regular primary care visits provide the continuity needed to catch subtle changes early and manage multiple conditions in a coordinated way.

Critical screenings men often overlook

Several important screenings receive insufficient attention in men’s healthcare, yet identifying these conditions early can prevent serious complications, including amputation, stroke, and even death.

• Peripheral arterial disease screening represents one of the most overlooked yet serious health threats facing older men. “Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and its most serious complication, Critical Limb Ischemia (CLI), is essentially like having a heart attack or stroke in your leg,” Dr. Boothe explains. This condition involves narrowing of arteries in the legs due to plaque buildup, similar to what happens in arteries supplying the heart and brain during heart attack or stroke. The consequences can be catastrophic. 

“According to the American Heart Association, it is reasonable to screen all men 65 years or older for PAD and men younger than 65 with certain risk factors such as tobacco use, diabetes, or chronic kidney disease.. We take blood pressure in your leg and arm and compare those. This is called an Ankle Brachial Index. If it’s low, you may be at risk for peripheral vascular disease, narrowing of the arteries in your legs,” Dr. Boothe explains. “It is very important that we screen for this because, if severe enough, treatment may ultimately involve major amputation and there is a serious mortality risk within a year of a major amputation. This is especially important in older African American males living in the ‘amputation belt’ of the Southeastern United States. “

• Comprehensive cholesterol assessment beyond basic cholesterol numbers is critical for tailored treatment. Understanding not just total cholesterol but specific cholesterol components allows for more targeted treatment. Additionally, newer cholesterol medications provide alternatives for men who can’t tolerate statins. 
• CT Coronary calcium scoring offers men with cardiovascular risk factors crucial information for personalized treatment. “For men at risk for cardiovascular disease, the number one killer of men, this 10-15 minute test done by CT scan, can be vital in quantifying the amount of  calcified plaque   in the coronary arteries. Doing so gives us some knowledge about the amount of plaque build up so we can personalize treatment based on calcium score,” Dr. Boothe explains. “We’re treating something we see rather than abstract numbers.”

This imaging test visualizes calcified plaque buildup in heart arteries, transforming abstract cholesterol numbers into concrete information about actual disease burden. Men with high  calcium scores can then be treated more aggressively, while those with a score of 0  may be able to avoid unnecessary medications.

• Prostate cancer screening requires careful consideration of risks and benefits. PSA (prostate-specific antigen) testing can be very beneficial, but  is not often on the list of recommended screenings, so it requires a conversation with your clinician to see if this screening makes sense for you. The complexity around PSA screening stems from the potential for false positives. . Dr. Boothe explains: “You can have a falsely elevated PSA, which buys you more evaluation and that isn’t without some risk. We need to have a conversation about this, which would be supported if we have a long-term ongoing relationship. 1 in 8 men will develop prostate cancer, so the goal is to catch early, aggressive cases.”

This conversation-based approach requires the kind of trust and continuity that only comes from ongoing primary care relationships where men and their doctors understand each other’s values and preferences.

Common misconceptions about men’s health and healthcare

Misunderstandings about healthcare prevent men from getting needed care and can delay diagnosis of serious conditions.

Misconception: “If I feel fine, I don’t need to see a doctor.”

Reality: Many serious conditions (high blood pressure, high cholesterol, early cancers, peripheral arterial disease) produce no symptoms until they’ve caused significant damage. A 45-year-old man might feel completely fine while having a serious underlying disease process waiting to happen. Preventive screenings identify these silent threats before they cause harm.

Misconception: Young men don’t need routine health visits.

Reality: “For young men between aging out of pediatrics and 30 years old, there are relatively few  recommended  screenings,” Dr. Boothe notes. This gap leaves young men without important health related education and guidance.

Establishing good healthcare habits early, including knowing how to do self-exams and understanding the importance of preventive care, sets men up for better health throughout their lives.

Misconception: My wife has to make me go to the doctor.

Reality: Dr. Boothe observes that “most of the time, men come to the doctor because their wife said, ‘If we want to have a baby, I need you to make sure you’re healthy,’ so we see men come in their 30s.” While spousal encouragement helps, men should prioritize their own health without waiting for someone else to insist.

Misconception specific to African American men: Healthcare is not for people who look like me.

This misconception, rooted in historical and ongoing systemic racism in healthcare, carries particular weight. For African American men specifically, this tendency is compounded by legitimate historical trauma. “Because systemic racism exists, and when we look back at the healthcare system from its infancy (for instance, with the gynecology experiments of Dr. J. Marion Sims and theTuskegee experiment), African Americans have been used as study cases without their consent. This has led  to generational  trauma: A 50 year old African American male may not go to the doctor because he has watched  generations of his family not engage with the healthcare system  due to an inherent mistrust that has been passed down, and rightfully so.”

This historical mistrust, grounded in real experiences of exploitation and abuse within the healthcare system, didn’t appear randomly. “The healthcare system has to do something to gain that trust back,” Dr. Boothe emphasizes. Healthcare clinicians must acknowledge this history and work actively to build trust through transparency, respect, and culturally competent care.

Building better healthcare relationships for men

Effective healthcare requires more than clinicians offering good care; it requires men engaging actively as partners in their own health.

“If I were advising my fellow African American men, I would say: Try to attain good knowledge of your own health and be willing to listen to advice from your clinician. Because there is an inherent mistrust, at times this may lead to an antagonistic relationship. If you as a patient have a good understanding of your own health, your clinician should  respect what you say because no one knows you better than you know yourself. Your clinician just wants to add to that knowledge. Bring your own thoughts to the table, engage, and interact,” he encourages.

The bottom line on men’s health

Men’s health doesn’t have to be complicated or overwhelming. It simply requires establishing a relationship with a primary care clinician early in life and maintaining regular contact throughout all of life’s stages. Whether you’re a teenager establishing healthy habits, a middle-aged man screening for chronic diseases, or a senior managing multiple conditions, consistent primary care provides the continuity and personalized attention that allows healthcare clinicians to catch problems early and help you live healthier, longer.

For younger men, this means visiting a doctor before there is a  need to and making preventive care normal. For middle-aged men, this means engaging in recommended screenings for cardiovascular disease, cancer, and other common conditions. For older men, this means maintaining the relationships and habits established earlier that allow for early detection of age-related conditions.

Starting the conversation with your primary care clinician about your individual health needs, your family history of disease, and your personal health goals sets the stage for truly personalized, proactive healthcare.

If you’re ready to prioritize your health and establish or strengthen your relationship with a primary care clinician, visit the Tryon Medical Partners website to schedule an appointment today.