{"id":921,"date":"2022-11-01T21:36:00","date_gmt":"2022-11-01T21:36:00","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2023-09-05T23:06:30","modified_gmt":"2023-09-05T15:06:30","slug":"whats-the-meaning-behind-movember","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/magazine.circledna.com\/whats-the-meaning-behind-movember\/","title":{"rendered":"What\u2019s The Meaning Behind Movember?"},"content":{"rendered":"

November has finally arrived, but not everyone fully understands the meaning of \u2018Movember\u2019, which is when people grow a mustache for the month of November. While most people are familiar with the concept of letting their facial hair grow during the winter months, some don\u2019t fully understand where this trend initially began.<\/p>\n

Movember isn\u2019t just a good way to keep your face warmer with extra facial hair as the temperature drops. It\u2019s also an opportunity to raise awareness (and sometimes raise funds) for an important cause. Similar to concepts such as Sober October<\/em>, or No Shave November<\/em>, Movember is a movement focused on uniting people around the globe with a shared focus, specifically about prostate cancer awareness.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Understanding the meaning behind Movember, what it stands for, and how you can get involved is a great way to do something valuable for your community this fall, while rocking a fun new look.<\/p>\n

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Movember Meaning: What Exactly is Movember?<\/h3>\n

Movember is a social movement<\/a> which takes place all over the world. The concept was first introduced in 2003, when a group of Australians came up with the idea to grow their facial hair (specifically their mustache) for 30 days during the month of November.<\/p>\n

The Movember foundation has funded more than 1,250 men\u2019s health<\/a> projects across the globe since 2003, focusing on everything from suicide prevention to testicular and prostate cancer. Initially, the group looked specifically at prostate and testicular cancer, but it has since evolved to tackle various health and wellness issues related to men.<\/p>\n

Currently, Movember has more than 5 million supporters around the world, and Movember has raised more than $1 billion<\/a> in donations for suicide prevention and other causes. The rules of the movement are simple. Men start the beginning of November with a freshly shaven face, then don\u2019t touch their razor until the 30th, which is when they remove excess facial hair and showcase their new mustache.<\/p>\n

Crucially, the initiative focuses only on the mustache. This differentiates it from No-Shave November, a separate group created for cancer awareness, which encourages people to gather the cash they\u2019d usually spend on maintaining their beards and hair to the American Cancer Society.<\/p>\n

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What Causes Does Movember Support?<\/h3>\n

As mentioned above, Movember is focused primarily on raising awareness for prostate and testicular cancer. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer for men, with around 52,000 diagnoses<\/a> made each year.<\/p>\n

However, the leaders behind the group also encourage participants to raise awareness for all wellness and health issues influencing men. The idea is that men change their appearances drastically by growing a mustache during the course of a month. This change inspires people to comment on the new mustache, at which point the participant can share information about Movember.<\/p>\n

According to Movember, the campaign is all about inspiring conversations, and getting more people to talk about issues affecting male physical and mental health. Currently, many men still have a difficult time talking about health issues. By linking complex topics to a fun annual activity, Movember raises awareness, and makes health less of a \u201ctaboo\u201d topic.<\/p>\n

How to Participate in Movember<\/h3>\n

Now that the Movember meaning has become more clear, there\u2019s a chance you might want to get involved this month. The good news is that it\u2019s relatively simple for anyone to take part. You start with a fresh face at the beginning of Movember, usually shaving the day before the event begins.<\/p>\n

You then \u201cdonate your face\u201d as a billboard for the Movember campaign by making sure you don\u2019t shave until the 30th of November. While you can simply take part in the not-shaving part of the campaign, there are also various ways to get involved by raising funds.<\/p>\n

Some participants ask for donations from their friends and families to contribute to the Prostate Cancer UK community. You could also follow similar guidelines to No-Shave November and donate the money you\u2019d usually spend on having your beard and mustache trimmed to a relevant charity.<\/p>\n

The official guidelines of Movember are:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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