Just like fashion, male grooming trends are cyclical. What’s ‘dropping’ one moment is flying out the window the next, in favour of the latest handlebar monstrosity craze. High-street trends are dictated, largely, by the fashion houses or celebrities whom we idolise, before six months later it filters down to the rest of us.
One such high-profile idol to suggest a way in which we should live our life is Hugh Jackman. And before you start to question his follicular choices, no, our Hugh hasn’t gone and got himself a mullet. Instead, the Hollywood megastar has recently taken to Instagram – in collaboration with Skin Check Champions – to spruik a far more important message that could potentially save your life, as opposed to simply generating a series of head-turning looks as you flounce down the street.
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As any Australian is well aware, the sun we receive Down Under can be feral, and with virtually all cities receiving sunshine for close to two-thirds of each year, the amount of time we’re exposed to the sun’s harmful rays is obscene. It’s with this in mind that Hugh has reminded us we need to get a regular skin check to potentially pick up on any signs of skin cancer.
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As Hugh says in his video message, “If you’re like and me and you didn’t really know any better when you were young, and you didn’t wear sunscreen and you were in the Australian sun, then you need to get a check-up even more.”
“But if not it doesn’t matter who you are, next time you are with your doctor or with a specialist if you can, just say ‘can you please give me a skin check?’ at least once a year.”
Hugh has particular reasoning to promote the message to, as he signed off by saying he himself recently had a skin check which led to him needing a biopsy on his ear which found signs of cancer. Fortunately for Hugh, it was picked up early enough to be treated, and that’s the whole point of the message.
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The importance of skin checks is a message we’ve encouraged before here at DMARGE, speaking regularly to Jimmy Niggles, the founder of Skin Check Champions (formerly Beard Season), and promoting the message that it’s ok – and necessary – to apply sun cream to your mate’s back when you go to the beach.
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When you consider “in NSW, men over the age of 40 are 1.5 times more likely to be diagnosed and 2.5 times more likely to die of melanoma than women of a similar age”, according to Cancer Council NSW Skin Cancer Prevention Manager Liz King, getting a skin check couldn’t be more paramount.