The health of men in Australia

Men in Australia face a range of health challenges that evolve throughout their lives. Biological factors, lifestyle choices, and social environments all play a role in shaping men’s health outcomes. This article provides a summary of the health of men in Australia, identifying how health changes across the life course, and how health outcomes and risks vary across different populations of men.

The AIHW produces data and information across many key areas relevant to men’s health, that may not be described in detail in this article. See men’s health topic page for more.

To learn more about the health outcomes of women, see The health of women in Australia.

Men’s health across the life course

A boy born in 2024 can expect to live to 81.6 years, on average. More than three-quarters (88%, or 71.7 years) of this will be lived in full health (meaning no disease or injury) (AIHW 2024a). As men age, there are different stages and events that affect health, leading to changing health concerns (Figure 1).

Data on the health outcomes by broad age groups as presented in the data visualisation can be accessed in the data tables S2.1, S3 and S4.

Health status of men in Australia

Burden of disease among men

Compared with women, men experience a higher proportion of total burden of disease from dying prematurely (fatal burden) than living with disease (non-fatal burden). In 2024, 52% of total disease burden in males was due to fatal burden and 48% was due to non-fatal burden. In contrast, 40% of total burden in females was due to fatal burden (AIHW 2024a).

The diseases that cause the most burden for males differ across the life course. Mental health conditions and substance use disorders, and injuries (including suicide and self-inflicted injuries) cause a large proportion of the burden in younger men (Figure 1). Chronic conditions such as coronary heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and dementia contribute the most to the burden in older men (Figure 1).

The burden of disease also varied across different population groups. For males in 2018, after standardising for age, the overall burden from disease was:

• 1.4 times as high in males living in Remote and very remote areas as males living in Major cities. The largest differences were observed in injury (2.3 times as high) and infectious disease (2.2 times as high) (AIHW 2021).
• 1.6 times as high in males living in the most disadvantaged socioeconomic areas as males living in the least disadvantaged areas. The largest differences were observed in endocrine disorders (including diabetes) (2 times as high) and injury (2 times as high) (AIHW 2021).
• 2.2 times as high in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (First Nations) males as non-Indigenous males. The largest differences were observed in kidney and urinary diseases (4.2 times as high) and endocrine disorders (including diabetes) (3.2 times as high) (AIHW 2022a).

For more extensive data on burden of disease see Burden of disease.

Long-term health conditions

In 2022, based on AIHW analysis of 72 selected long-term health conditions self-reported to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 2022 National Health Survey (NHS):

• 60% of Australia’s males were living with at least one selected long-term health condition– slightly lower than females at 61%.
• Multimorbidity (living with 2 or more long-term health conditions) was slightly less common overall amongst males (37%) than females (39%).
• Men aged 75 and over were more commonly living with multimorbidity than women in the same age group, 80% of males compared with 73% of females aged 75 and over (AIHW 2025k).

Back problems (20%), anxiety disorders (15%), and arthritis (15%) were the most common conditions reported by men in the 2022 NHS. Colour blindness, heart attacks and gout were conditions more commonly reported in men than women (ABS 2023b).

Overall, the prevalence of chronic conditions for men increases with age. However, some conditions are more common at certain ages. For example, deafness and hearing loss, and heart, stroke and vascular diseases are more common in older men, and mental and behavioural conditions are more common in younger men (Figure 2).

For further information and a list of the 72 selected conditions see Multimorbidity. For further information on multimorbidity across age groups, see the multimorbidity data tables. For insights into what may be driving the sex differences in multimorbidity by age, see the section on variations by age and sex in the Multimorbidity report.

Cancer

Males in Australia are more likely to be diagnosed with cancer than females, although this gap has narrowed since 2000 due to a smaller increase in incidence (new cases) among males. The sex disparity has also narrowed for overall survival outcomes. Between 1991–1995 and 2016–2020, the 5-year survival rate for men rose from 51% to 70%, while for women it rose from 59% to 73%. Men continue to experience higher overall cancer mortality rates. The age-adjusted rate for men in 2024 was 1.5 times that of women –down from 1.7 times in 2000 (AIHW 2024b).

Between 2000 and 2024, cancer incidence in males rose by 3% while cancer mortality fell by 30%. The changes in incidence and mortality among males this century varied by cancer type (Figure 3).

Prostate cancer was the most common cancer among males, accounting for more than 1 in 4 (28%) of all cancers in 2024. Prostate cancer incidence rates have been volatile since 2000 largely because of changes in prostate-specific antigen testing, including the threshold for referral for prostate biopsy. See Cancer commentary 9 for further information (AIHW 2024b).

Lung cancer, one of the cancers with the lowest survival rates, remains more common in males than females (age-standardised incidence rate of 46.1 per 100,000 in males compared with 39.8 per 100,000 for females). However, there have been strong and enduring falls in the incidence and mortality of lung cancer for males and not females (AIHW 2024b).

Several cancers had much higher incidence in males than females. In 2024, the male estimated incidence rate of:

• mesothelioma was 3.6 as high
• bladder cancer was 3.8 times as high
• liver cancer was 3.0 times as high
• head and neck (including lip) cancer was 2.9 times as high (AIHW 2024b).

This is often related to higher rates of exposure to risk factors such as occupational exposures (including asbestos), smoking and alcohol use. Also, higher rates of hepatitis B virus and hepatitis C virus among Australian men contributes to the gender disparities in liver cancer incidence (King et al. 2024).

The cancer types with the highest incidence rates for men varied across their life course. For further data on cancer incidence and mortality rates for the most common cancers in each age group, see data table S5.

Differences in cancer incidence data among specific male population groups, highlight:

• Liver cancer incidence rates among males from Mainland South-East Asia, North Africa, Central and West Africa and Chinese Asia regions of birth were more than double the Australia-born rate (AIHW 2024b).
• Prostate cancer incidence rates for overseas-born populations in Australia can be much higher than those reported in the country of birth (AIHW 2024b).
• First Nations males had higher incidence rates for lung cancer and liver cancer but lower rates for prostate cancer and bowel cancer than non-Indigenous Australian males (AIHW and NIAA 2023).

See 1.08 Cancer - AIHW Indigenous HPF and Cancer data in Australia for more information. 

Cancer screening

The National Bowel Cancer Screening Program (NBCSP) aims to reduce the morbidity and mortality from bowel cancer by actively recruiting and screening people aged 50–74, for early detection or prevention of the disease. 

For this screening program:

• 40% of eligible men invited in 2022–2023 completed a bowel test, compared with 44% of eligible women.
• 700 per 10,000 men screened had a positive faecal occult blood result compared with 500 per 10,000 women in 2023.
• 25 per 10,000 men screened in 2019 had a bowel cancer detected compared with 16.5 per 10,000 women (AIHW 2025l).

From 1 July 2024, people aged 45–49 years can join the program by requesting their first bowel testing kit.

On 1^st July 2025, the National Lung Cancer Screening Program commenced in Australia. The program screens for lung cancer in high-risk individuals using low-dose computed tomography (low-dose CT) scans. See About the National Lung Cancer Screening Program for more information.

Mental health

Based on the National Study of Mental Health and Wellbeing (NSMHW) 2020–2022, nearly 1 in 5 (18%) men aged 16–85 had experienced a mental illness in the last 12 months and 42% had experienced a mental illness at any point in their lifetime (AIHW 2024h, ABS 2023d). The study assesses 3 groups of mental disorders: anxiety, affective, and substance use disorders. For information on what is included in the scope of mental illness prevalence presented using this data, see National Study of Mental Health and Wellbeing, 2020-2022.

The proportion of men aged 16–85 in the NSMHW reporting any substance use disorders in the 12 months before the study was twice as high as women (4.4% compared with 2.1%) (AIHW 2024h, ABS 2023d). This sex disparity was consistent across all age groups of men (aged 16 and over). For more on substance use see Substance use disorders and Tobacco, alcohol and other drugs. The proportion of men aged 16–85 reporting any anxiety disorders, affective disorders, or a mental illness in the last 12 months was lower than women aged 16–85 (Figure 4).

The proportion of men aged 16 and over who experienced a mental illness in the last 12 months has been stable (17% in both 2007 and 2020–2022). However, for men aged 16–24, prevalence increased from 23% in 2007 to 32% in 2020–2022. This was driven by an increase in the proportion of men in this age group reporting an anxiety disorder, up from 9.2% in 2007 to 24.4% in 2020–2022 (AIHW 2024h, ABS 2023d, ABS 2008).

According to the Australian Burden of Disease study 2024, mental health and substance use disorders is the third highest contributor to the burden of disease for men (13% of total burden). The burden of mental ill health is especially high in young men. Among men aged 15–24, 4 of the 5 top causes of disease burden were related to mental health and substance use disorders (see Figure 1). Anxiety and depressive disorders featured in the top 5 causes of disease burden for men and women aged 15–24 and 25–44. Alcohol use disorders featured in the top 5 causes of disease burden only for men aged 15–24 and did not feature at all as a leading cause of burden for women in any age group (AIHW 2024a).

Based on the 2022–23 National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey, First Nations men were less likely to report having a long-term mental health condition than First Nations women (26% compared with 33%). Over time, the proportion of First Nations men reporting having a long-term mental health condition has increased slightly, from 23% in 2018–19 to 26% in 2022–23 (ABS 2024b).

For more information see: Prevalence and impact of mental illness and 1.18 Social and emotional wellbeing - AIHW Indigenous HPF.

Mortality

In 2023, 96,000 males died in Australia. The median age at death for males was younger than females, 80 years compared with 85 (AIHW 2025d).

Death rates for males have been consistently higher than females over the last hundred years. The largest differences were between the 1960s and 1980s, marked by bigger increases in male deaths from cardiovascular disease (CVD) in the late 1960s and smoking-related cancers from 1960 to the 1980s (AIHW 2022b). From the 1970s, the gap between the sexes narrowed as death rates fell faster in males than females. This trend was most notably observed for CVD deaths while lung cancer death rates increased in females due to their increased uptake of smoking until the mid-1970s (AIHW 2022b).

However, the gap between the sexes increased again between 2021 and 2022 due to higher rates of COVID-19 deaths in males compared to females. Since 2023, the sex difference in the death rate has returned to pre-pandemic levels and the death rate overall for both males and females has continued to fall (AIHW 2025d).

In 2023, 50% of deaths in males aged under 75 were potentially avoidable, compared with 46% for females. Of all potentially avoidable deaths, 63% occurred in males. Coronary (ischaemic) heart disease was the leading cause of these deaths (22%), followed by suicide (12%) and bowel cancer (8%) (AIHW 2025d).

The difference between the proportion of potentially avoidable deaths among males and females has been stable since 2016. After adjusting for age, potentially avoidable death rates for males fell by 11% between 2013 and 2023 (AIHW 2025d).

For further information see, Deaths in Australia, trends in deaths.

Leading causes of death

The leading causes of death for boys and men varies across their life course (Figure 1). Though the causes of death among males and females are broadly similar, there are some notable differences.

In 2023:

• Coronary heart disease was the leading cause of death for males. It was the underlying cause in 11% and 7.6% of male and female deaths respectively.
• Suicide, chronic liver disease, Parkinson’s disease and liver cancer were among the most common underlying causes of death in males but not in females.
• Diabetes was the most common contributory cause of deaths in males. It was a contributing cause to around 1 in every 13 male deaths.
• Substance use disorders (alcohol, drug and tobacco use disorders) were among the most common causes contributing to death for males but not females (AIHW 2025d).

For further information on causes of death see, Deaths in Australia, Leading causes of death and Deaths in Australia, Multiple causes of death. Data on the leading underlying and contributory causes of death can be explored in supplementary tables S8.5 and S8.6 of the Deaths in Australia data tables.

Mortality outcomes by population group

In 2021–2023, the age-standardised death rate for males was:

• 1.5 times as high in Very remote areas as in Major cities
• 1.5 times as high in the lowest socioeconomic areas as in the highest socioeconomic areas
• 1.7 times as high for First Nations people as non-Indigenous Australians in New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory (AIHW 2025d).

Patterns were similar across each of these groups for other mortality outcomes, including median age at death and potentially avoidable deaths.

Looking at the leading underlying causes of death by population group provides insights into factors contributing to disparities in mortality outcomes. For example, land transport accidents and accidental poisoning featured in the top 10 leading causes of death for First Nations men in New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory but not for non-Indigenous Australians living in the same jurisdictions.

For further insights on mortality outcomes and causes of death by population group, see Deaths in Australia, Variation in deaths between population groups and 1.23 Leading causes of mortality - AIHW Indigenous HPF.

Disability

Over 2.6 million Australian males had a disability in 2022, 21% of the total male population. The longer people live, the more likely they are to experience some form of disability. In 2022, 10% of males aged 25–34 had disability, increasing to 42% of males aged 65–69 (ABS 2024a).

Before the age of 15, males were more likely to have severe or profound disability than females; the likelihood of having severe or profound disability did not vary much by sex until age 85, after which females were more likely to have severe or profound disability (ABS 2024a).

For more information on disability in men, including types of disability, disability support and impact see People with disability in Australia.

Key health risk factors for men

According to the 2024 Australian Burden of Disease Study, 38% of total burden in males was attributable to the risk factors included in the study (joint effect), which was higher than for females (33%) (AIHW 2024a). Risk factors can contribute either directly or indirectly to health outcomes. Protective factors can enhance positive outcomes and lessen the chance of negative consequences from exposure to risk. Reducing exposure to modifiable risk factors can prevent disease burden and promote better health.

Risk factors that contributed more to disease burden in males than in females included alcohol use, occupational exposures and hazards, illicit drug use and high cholesterol (AIHW 2024a). The risk factors with the largest contribution to disease burden in males by age, and how these have changed over time, can be explored in the interactive graph- Attributable burden across the life course.

Risk factors that contribute to the health of men in Australia include biomedical, behavioural and environmental factors.

Other factors or ‘determinants’ of health also influence and affect the health of men and communities. Health determinants include general socioeconomic, cultural and environmental conditions; living and working conditions; social and community networks; and individual behavioural and biological factors. See What are determinants of health?

Overweight and obesity, diet and physical activity

Overweight and obesity is the leading risk factor contributing to disease burden in males. It was responsible for 8.8% of the total burden of disease in 2024 (AIHW 2024a) and is listed in the top 5 risk factors for all age groups above 25.

Overweight and obesity is associated with other health risk factors, including physical inactivity and dietary behaviours that can independently contribute to disease. Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2022 National Health Survey shows for men aged 18 and over:

• 71% are living with overweight or obesity, compared with 61% of women aged 18 and over (AIHW 2024e)
• those living in the most disadvantaged areas were 1.5 times as likely to be living with obesity than men living in the least disadvantaged areas (AIHW 2024e)
• the proportion who self-reported not meeting the physical activity guidelines (excluding exercise at work) declined from 65% in 2017–18 to 44% in 2022 (AIHW 2024g)
• 59% aged 18–64, met the recommended daily exercise guidelines when workplace activity was excluded. This increased to 66% when physical activity at work was included (AIHW 2024g).
• 98% self-reported not meeting the recommended daily intake of fruit and vegetables, compared with 94% for women aged 18 and over (AIHW 2024c).

For more data on these risk factors, see Diet, Physical activity and Overweight and obesity.

Tobacco, alcohol and other drugs

Tobacco, alcohol and illicit drug use are all in the top 10 leading risk factors contributing to disease burden in Australian males, ranking second (7.9% of total burden), fourth (5.5%) and seventh (3.9%), respectively. Between 2003 and 2024, the disease burden attributable to tobacco and alcohol use declined, while the burden linked to illicit drug use increased (AIHW 2024a).

Data from the National Drug Strategy and Household Survey 2022–2023 (AIHW 2024f) showed that for men in general since 2019, the rates of daily tobacco smoking have declined, daily use of e-cigarettes/vapes have increased and illicit drug use in the last 12 months have remained stable.

In 2022–2023, men were more likely to consume risky amounts of alcohol than women (39% compared with 24%, respectively). However, this proportion has fallen for men since 2019 (42%). The largest falls were observed among men aged 45–54 (45% to 39%) and 15–24 (38% to 32%) (AIHW 2024f).

In 2022–2023, patterns of risky alcohol consumption were similar for men irrespective of their age, but illicit drug use was more common in younger men than older men. Twenty-eight percent of those aged 18–24 reported illicit drug use in the past 12 months, the highest of any age group, compared with 6.7% of those aged 65 and over (AIHW 2024f). These age-based differences could affect patterns of disease burdens in the future.

Men have higher alcohol-related hospitalisations and alcohol-induced deaths than women.

• Almost 3 in 5 (58%) alcohol-related hospitalisations in 2022–23 were for men, a rate of 355 per 100,000 population compared with 256 for women.
• Almost 3 in 4 (71%) alcohol-induced deaths in 2023 were men, a rate of 8.1 per 100,000 population compared with 3.3 for women (AIHW 2025c).

Occupational health risks 

Occupational exposures and hazards were the ninth leading risk factor contributing to disease burden in males. The proportion among men aged 15 and over was estimated to be 2.1% in 2024, around 2.3 times that for women (AIHW 2024a).

According to the ABS’s work-related injuries (ABS 2023f), of those who experienced a work-related injury or illness in 2021–22:

• more than half were men (58%)
• the highest rate was for men aged 55–59 (46 per 1,000) followed by those aged 30–34 (45 per 1,000)
• the rate was higher for men born in Australia (43 per 1,000) than those born overseas (31 per 1,000).

Of all men, the proportion who experienced a work-related injury or illness in the last 12 months was 3.9%, a decrease from 4.4% in 2017–18 (ABS 2023f).

The most common causes of work-related injuries for men were lifting, pushing, pulling or bending (25%) followed by a fall on the same level (including slip or fall) (18%). The most common industries where men experienced a work-related injury or illness in the last 12 months were: construction (17%), public administration and safety (which includes defence and emergency services) (12%) and transport, postal and warehousing (11%) (ABS 2023f).

Mesothelioma is a rare and aggressive cancer that is more prevalent among Australian men. Most mesothelioma cases are caused by asbestos exposure at work, especially in jobs like mining and construction that have traditionally employed more men. For more information, see the AIHW’s Mesothelioma in Australia 2024 report (AIHW 2025j).

Deaths from traumatic injuries in the workplace are reported to Safe Work Australia. Most (96%) of the people who died at work in 2024 were males (180 of 188 traumatic injury deaths). In 2024, the rate of males who died at work was 2.4 per 100,000 workers (SWA 2025). Safe Work Australia’s Key Work Health and Safety Statistics Australia 2025 provides a snapshot of the latest work health and safety data in Australia.

Violence

Violence is a broad term, that encompasses a range of behaviours and definitions that vary according to different legislation and practices. It can have physical, sexual and psychological effects, with serious and long-term impacts on individuals, families and communities.

According to data from the ABS Personal Safety Survey, in 2021–22 among adult men (aged 18 and over):

• more than 2 in 5 (43%) had experienced physical and/or sexual violence since the age of 15, compared with 39% of women
• 42% had experienced physical violence since the age of 15, compared with 31% of women
• around 1 in 16 (6.1%) had experienced sexual violence since the age of 15 compared with more than 1 in 5 (22%) women (ABS 2023e).

A higher proportion of men (aged 18 and over) experienced violence by a physical assault from a stranger (30%) than from a known person (25%) since the age of 15 (ABS 2023e).

Males are more likely to be perpetrators of physical and sexual violence. It is estimated that 38% (7.5 million) of Australians aged 18 and over have experienced physical and/or sexual violence by a male at least once since the age of 15 compared with 11% (2.2 million) who have experienced violence by a female (ABS 2023e).

According to data from Ten to Men, more than 1 in 3 (35%) men (aged 18–57 years) reported that they had ever used a form of intimate partner violence as an adult by 2022. This is up from 24% who had ever reported use by 2013–14 (AIFS 2025). 

Men’s engagement in intimate partner violence is influenced by a range of complex and interrelated factors. Findings from the Ten to Men study highlight associations between mental health, levels of social support, and the quality of paternal relationships. For further information, refer to the Australian Institute of Family Studies publication: The use of intimate partner violence among Australian men.

Men’s health care use

Hospital and emergency presentations

In 2023–24, there were 6 million hospitalisations for males (48% of total hospitalisations) – a rate of 456 hospitalisations per 1,000 males (AIHW 2025a). The reasons for hospitalisation varied by age group (see Figure 1).

Hospitalisation rates increased with age (from 136 per 1,000 males among the 15–24 age group to 1,848 per 1,000 males aged 85 and over). Compared with females, hospitalisation rates were higher for males aged 55 and over and lower for those under 55- see Who used these services? Table 3.8 (AIHW 2025a).

There were 292,200 hospitalisations in 2023–24 for First Nations males – 4.8% of all male hospitalisations. Hospitalisations were lower for First Nations males than First Nations females (42% and 58% of all First Nations hospitalisations, respectively). This difference was consistent across all age groups (AIHW 2025a).

In 2023–24, males and females accounted for 4.4 million and 4.6 million presentations to Australian public hospital emergency departments (ED) (49% and 51% of total ED presentations, respectively). Compared with females, males were slightly more likely to be triaged as ‘emergency’ (within 10 minutes) (18% and 16%) and ‘semi-urgent’ (within 60 minutes) (35% and 34%), and less likely to be triaged as ‘urgent’ (within 30 minutes) (39% and 43%) (AIHW 2025f).

Health services

In 2023–24, males accessed almost 104 million non-hospital Medicare-subsidised services, or 42% of total services. Males, were less likely than females to attend the following Medicare-subsidised services:

• general practitioner (GP) (80% compared with 88%)
• allied health (33% compared with 44%)
• specialist (29% compared with 34%) (AIHW 2025i).

According to the ABS Patient Experiences survey 2023–24 (ABS 2024c), males were less likely to have used a range of health services and mental health services than females. A slightly higher proportion of males did not see a mental health professional when needed (10.8% compared with 9.4%). This gap was more pronounced among males aged 75 and over and those aged 25–34 (Figure 5).

Men’s experiences of health care

Men’s health behaviours and attitudes, gender stereotypes and biases can affect their interaction with a health care practitioner, and their experience engaging with and seeking out health care (Seidler et al. 2025)

Movember’s The Real Face of Men’s Health 2024 Australian report, a commissioned poll of 1,658 men on their experiences of health and health care found that:

• 67% wanted to leave their health care practitioner because of a lack of personal connection
• 63% felt gender stereotypes had affected their health behaviours and experiences in health care settings
• 53% believed it was normal for men to avoid regular health check-ups
• 36% had experienced gender bias from their health care practitioner (Movember 2024). 

Priority health concerns for men

Suicide

In 2023, death by suicide was 3 times higher in males than females – 2,419 deaths by suicide for males and 795 deaths by suicide for females. Rates of suicide for males remained consistent over the last decade (age-standardised 18.9 deaths per 100,000 population in 2014 and 18.0 in 2023) (AIHW 2025m). 

In 2023, male suicide rates varied by age, with the highest rate observed among those aged 55–59 (30.9 deaths per 100,000 population), followed by the 45­–49 age group (27.3) and the 40–44 age group (27.2) (AIHW 2025m).

There are differences between methods of suicide used by males and females – with males tending to use more lethal methods than females. In 2023, hanging was the most common method, accounting for almost two-thirds (63%) of male deaths by suicide. Rates of suicide by firearm are higher for males than females, though use of firearms declined steeply for both males and females from 1987 and continued to decline from 1996, coinciding with the introduction of gun control restrictions and reforms (AIHW 2025m).

Risk factors are behaviours or aspects of lifestyle, environmental exposures or inherited characteristics that can interact to influence people’s risk of suicidal behaviours. Differences in rates of suicide among different groups of males can give insights into factors contributing to higher suicide risk. Among males:

• with only secondary school or lower education the suicide risk is 2.6 times higher than among males with a university degree (AIHW 2025e)
• for unemployed males (aged 25–54 years) the risk is 2.5 times higher than those employed (AIHW 2025e)
• ‘Personal history of self-harm‘ was a risk factor for 17.7% of male deaths by suicide (AIHW 2025g)
• ‘Disruption of family by separation and divorce’ and ‘Problems in relationship with spouse or partner' were a frequently occurring psychosocial risk factor in males (13.9% and 13.7% respectively) (AIHW 2025g)
• ‘Limitation of activities due to disability’ was the most commonly identified risk factor in males aged 65 years and over (25.0% in 2023) (AIHW 2025g)

For more information and reporting on suicide see Suicide & self-harm monitoring.

Substance use disorders

Use of alcohol and other substances causes a disproportionate level of harm to men in Australia. This section focuses on substance use disorders, and specialist treatment for alcohol and other drug use.

In 2024, alcohol use disorders were the 6^th leading cause of non-fatal disease burden among males and drug use disorders (excluding alcohol) were the 11^th. Since 2003, the non-fatal burden due to alcohol use disorders has fallen by 16% but it has risen by 13% for drug use disorders (AIHW 2024a).

Substance use disorders were more common among males than females. In 2024, the burden of disease among males was:

• 2 times as high as females for alcohol use disorders
• 1.9 times as high as females for drug use disorders (excluding alcohol) (AIHW 2024a) .

Publicly funded, alcohol and other drug (AOD) treatment services provide support to people who are seeking assistance for their own drug use and those seeking assistance for someone else’s drug use. Treatment objectives can include reduction or cessation of alcohol or drug use as well as improvements to social and personal functioning. 

In 2023–24:

• of the 131,900 clients aged 10 and over, who received treatment for their own or someone else’s alcohol or drug use, 3 in 5 (60%) were male
• of the 49,552 clients aged 10 and over who received treatment for alcohol as a principal drug of concern (PDOC), 3 in 5 (60%) were male
• of the 1,440 clients aged 10 and over who received treatment for nicotine as their PDOC, half (50%) were male
• where cocaine was the PDOC (1,858 clients), 82% of those aged 10 and over were male
• among First Nations clients aged 10 and over, 3 in 5 (58%) were male (AIHW 2025b).

For more information and reporting on substance use disorders, including impacts and treatment see Alcohol, Illicit use of drugs and Alcohol & other drug treatment services.

Sexual and reproductive health

Men’s sexual and reproductive health across the life course encompasses a wide range of areas. These include maintaining healthy sexual function, fertility, and preventing and managing sexually transmitted infections (STIs). 

Available data show the significant impact of sexual and reproductive health experiences in men:

• According to the Ten to Men study, a sample of 5,642 Australian adult men (aged 18–64 years), 26% experienced erectile dysfunction (Van Doorn et al. 2025).
• 54% of 12,636 Australian men (aged 18 to 55) sampled reported having at least one sexual difficulty over the past 12 months (Schlichthorst et al. 2016).
• About 1 in 20 men are affected by male fertility problems. These account for about 30% of the fertility challenges experienced by Australian couples (Monash IVF 2022).
• 1 in 450 to 600 males are estimated to be born with Klinefelter’s syndrome, the most common cause of primary androgen deficiency and male infertility (Mehmet et al. 2025). However, many men are not diagnosed, until they try to start a family (Healthy Male 2021).
• In 2023, 25,650 men aged 15 and over were estimated to be living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in Australia, and 619 new cases of HIV were diagnosed among men (Kirby Institute 2024).
• In 2024, there were about 90,400 notifications of chlamydia, donovanosis, gonococcal infection and syphilis for males (all ages). This was 58% of all notifications for these STIs in males and females (The Department of Health, Disability and Ageing 2025).

Injury

Males have higher rates of injury-related emergency department (ED) presentations, hospitalisations and deaths, than females.

In 2023–24, males accounted for nearly 6 in 10 (57%) injury-related ED presentations and 55% of injury-related hospitalisations. Men aged 19–24 had the highest rate of ED presentation, while men aged 65 and over had the most hospitalisations. After standardising for age, males were more likely than females to be hospitalised for injuries across all causes except for falls and intentional self-harm. After standardising for age, injury-related ED presentations were 2.0 times as high for First Nations males as non-Indigenous males (AIHW 2025h).

In 2022–23, males accounted for around 6 in 10 (61%) injury-related deaths. After standardising for age, males were more likely than females to die across all causes of injury (65.1 males and 32.9 females per 100,000 population) (AIHW 2025h).

The most common causes of injury hospitalisations and deaths by sex can be found in the difference by age and sex section of the Injury in Australia report.

For more information see: Injuries affecting men in Australia: A closer look and Injury in Australia.

Healthy ageing

Australian men are living longer than before, so the population of older men is growing. It is increasingly important to understand the health concerns, risk factors, and preventive health measures that can support healthy ageing.

Among men aged 65 and over:

• 1.1 million had disability in 2022, of which 400,000 had profound or severe core activity limitation (ABS 2024a)
• hospitalisations for contact with objects are more common than among women over 65 (AIHW 2025h)
• 65% of those aged 65–74 live with 2 or more selected long-term health conditions, rising to 80% of those aged 75 and over (AIHW 2025k)
• the burden of disease due to cardiovascular diseases is higher than that for women aged over 65 (AIHW 2024a). The proportion self-reporting heart attacks in the NHS was particularly high for men (10% compared with 3.4%) (ABS 2023b)
• coronary heart disease is the leading cause of disease burden (AIHW 2024a).

In 2022, more than two-thirds (68%) of Australians living with coronary heart disease (CHD) were men. While the proportion of men and women living with CHD were similar for younger ages (18–44), there are large differences between men and women aged 55 and over. Among men, CHD prevalence increases from 5.8% at age 45–54 to 18.7% at age 75 and over. This compares to 1.6% to 8.8% for women in the same age ranges (AIHW 2024d).

The biggest known risk factor for CHD in men is dietary risks (23%), followed by high blood pressure (19%) and high cholesterol (16%). Lifestyle changes can help reduce key risk factors contributing to the overall burden of ill health in older age groups. Overweight or obesity, tobacco use, dietary risks, and high blood pressure are the risk factors with the highest contribution to overall disease burden in older men (AIHW 2024a).

Preventive health checks such as screening programs and designated health checks can be powerful measures to improve men’s health (Movember 2024) and support healthy ageing. In 2023–24, more than 199,000 Heart Health Checks were processed by Medicare (males 97,300, females 101,900). These checks were most commonly conducted among people aged 55–64 (61,000) and 65–74 (53,200) (Services Australia 2024).

Where do I go for more information?

• Movember’ s The Real Face of Men’s Health report outlines the state of men’s health across Australia. It offers insights into what men's health looks like and means for individuals.
• Men's physical, sexual & mental health information | Healthy Male
• Men's health | Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing