Mumbai/ Pune, November 21, 2024: Emcure Pharmaceuticals Ltd., a leading Indian pharmaceutical company, launched a nationwide public awareness campaign to address the growing concern of anemia among Indian men. The campaign, featuring renowned cricket icon MS Dhoni in a video released on International Men’s Day, aims to highlight the serious health implications of anemia in men and encourage early diagnosis and treatment.
The National Family Health Survey-5 (NFHS-5) reveals a concerning rise in anemia across India, with a prevalence rate of 31% among adolescent boys and 25% among men. In recent years, anemia has risen significantly among teenage boys (15–19 years) in 23 states and among men (15–49 years) in 17 states, highlighting a growing public health challenge.
For decades, Emcure has been actively working to raise awareness about anemia among women through various initiatives. However, with anemia rates rising among men, the company is now expanding its campaign to address the importance of tackling the issue among men as well.
Anemia can lead to a range of serious health consequences, including decreased attention span, poor work performance, and reduced productivity. Individuals with anemia are also 2.5 times more likely to develop conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, chronic kidney disease, cancer, TB, diabetes, asthma, osteoarthritis, hypertension, and cardiovascular diseases. Despite these significant risks, male anemia often goes unnoticed and underreported in national and international health statistics.
On International Men’s Day, Emcure has launched an awareness campaign to help spread the word about male anemia, its symptoms, and how to check for iron deficiency anaemia by doing a fast self-test on a dedicated website – anemiafreeindia.com. Known for his keen intuition on the field, multiple World Cup winning and former India captain MS Dhoni, has set out to educate men and teenagers alike, about the typical symptoms of anemia and the need for identifying it and acting appropriately when symptoms arise.
Speaking on the initiative, Dr. Anupam Sachdeva, Director- Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplantation Institute for Child Health Sri Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi shared, “The increasing prevalence of Anemia among men nationwide signifies an imminent threat to our economic productivity. To counter this rising trend, a strategic and targeted approach, specifically tailored to individual states, is essential for mitigating and preventing Anemia among men. Recognition of common signs like difficulty to concentrate, getting tired very soon whilst working, feeling tired even after a meal, shortness of breath, dizziness and weakness is the first step towards correcting your Iron deficiency levels.”
Emcure is at forefront in raising awareness about Anemia. Anil Kothiyal – President, India Business, shares, “Through this campaign Emcure has once again reaffirmed its resolve towards tackling important health challenges. This is an expansion of our current programs and initiatives to combat the growing menace of anemia, which also affects men, but is often overlooked. In addressing such a key concern, we are not only achieving our objective of improving patients’ health, but also reaffirming Emcure’s focus on preventive healthcare.”