Movember's a real knockout this year ..with Barry's help

Ring legend calls for men's health action after new report on issue

- SANDRA MALLON Showbiz Editor

LEGENDARY boxer Barry McGuigan says urgent change is needed for men accessing healthcare in Ireland.

It comes after researchers behind a damning report, the Real Face of Men's Health, found two in five male deaths were premature and that men are 40 per cent more likely to die prematurely than women.

Reacting to the report, Movember Ambassador Barry said: "The findings demonstrate the urgent need to take real and meaningful action to positively address the barriers to men accessing healthcare."

Barry, who launched the report along with singer and fellow ambassador Cian Ducrot, added: "The findings are stark, but it also provides solutions to the issues. There is now a real opportunity for those involved in our healthcare system to really address the issues raised — and to implement initiatives that can have a real and positive impact in the lives of men in Ireland, and beyond, in families and communities."

The report, launched yesterday, found that men living in the most deprived areas in Ireland were 150 per cent more likely to die before the age of 75 than those living in the least deprived areas.