One man in five dies before the age of 65.
TOGETHER we can change that.

Viagra via pharmacists? Sounds like a good idea to us.

28/03/17 . News

The Men’s Health Forum has welcomed the MHRA consultation on making the erectile dysfunction drug, Sildenafil (commonly known as 'viagra').,available directly to men via pharmacists.

The consultation launched on March 28 and will continue till April 14. You can respond to the consultation here.

Martin Tod, Chief Executive of the Men’s Health Forum, commented:

We think this is good news. If this change goes ahead, it will mean that more men get help to tackle a common, but very real, issue that causes many men and their partners distress. It also means that more men who are worried about erection problems but who are not currently getting help will be able to see a health professional on any high street. Erection problems can be a sign of something more serious, such as heart disease or diabetes, so this is really important.

This is also an area where many men want help so much that they’ve been prepared to buy drugs illegally. We would far rather people saw a pharmacist before getting help for ED rather than buying fake drugs from dodgy websites.

Whatever the outcome of the consultation, Sildenafil (Viagra) will still be available on prescription, which will remain important for men who cannot easily afford to buy the drug in a pharmacy.

The Men’s Health Forum need your support

It’s tough for men to ask for help but if you don’t ask when you need it, things generally only get worse. So we’re asking.

In the UK, one man in five dies before the age of 65. If we had health policies and services that better reflected the needs of the whole population, it might not be like that. But it is. Policies and services and indeed men have been like this for a long time and they don’t change overnight just because we want them to.

It’s true that the UK’s men don’t have it bad compared to some other groups. We’re not asking you to ‘feel sorry’ for men or put them first. We’re talking here about something more complicated, something that falls outside the traditional charity fund-raising model of ‘doing something for those less fortunate than ourselves’. That model raises money but it seldom changes much. We’re talking about changing the way we look at the world. There is nothing inevitable about premature male death. Services accessible to all, a population better informed. These would benefit everyone - rich and poor, young and old, male and female - and that’s what we’re campaigning for.

We’re not asking you to look at images of pity, we’re just asking you to look around at the society you live in, at the men you know and at the families with sons, fathers and grandads missing.

Here’s our fund-raising page - please chip in if you can.

Registered with the Fundraising Regulator

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  • The Men's Health Forum
  • 82 Tanner Street
  • London, SE1 3GN

Charity registered in England and Wales (no. 1087375). Company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales (no. 4142349).