| Research and reading are activities that require exercise of the cognitive powers. Various studies (Liang and Luan, 2023)(Thorpe, et al, 2023) have shown positive correlation between
cognitive exercise and mental health, in older men. That equates, in general jargon, to say that if you 'don't use it you will lose it'. That is the case with both the physical
abilities, and the mental abilities. Many would be familiar with the fact that if a person does not exercise a certain capacity of the body or mind, the capacity will deteriorate.
That is especially the case, in people over 60 years old. The older you get, the faster unexercised capacities will deteriorate. Many older men will have a professional, trade
or engineering career history. All of those career paths would have required extensive reading and research elements. Many would not only have read and researched in their
careers, but also have written and published as well. It is important therefore, that for a man in the older years, the mind is kept active, with reading, writing, and research.
It was decided to build a Men's Shed library to support older men in their knowledge base. Regrettably, much of the published literature takes a condescending view of Men's Sheds. Published
literature (Kelly, Steiner, Mason, Teasdale, 2021) represents Men's Sheds as places where retired/unemployed/socially displaced/isolated men with poor physical or mental health, or substance abuse problems, can come to find social contact, and take occupational
therapy in handicrafts, like woodwork. That is not actually the case, and while that may be an extreme end of a Men's Shed client base, this site does not hold this to be typical. This site holds that that position is atypical
and actually quite false. Men's Sheds are places where older men, with great career and life experience, in excellent health, do associate. Indeed this web site is written by older men; and by
no means does it appear to be published by men in poor mental health at all. The men who wrote this site have extensive, but now retired, professional I.T. careers. REMEMBER !! skills in
older men, developed in youth, are not always lost with advancing age. While the physical abilily of an older man may decline, his trade skills, and the managerial, mathematical, writing and
speaking skills, may, nevertheless, remain razor sharp.
This site takes the view that Men's Sheds are typically places where men who have retired from professional or trades careers, associate for mutual friendship and to maintain
skills, or ancilliary skills, of their earlier careers. That ensures exercise of the body and the mind, that is so important in senior years. There are also, in some cases, younger men who look for mentorship.
The library facility of a Men's Shed supports all of this. The library is also a resource for men looking for information on men's health and other related topics, like self confidence in
older age, and dealing with issues, in aging, like diminishing physical strength, medical issues, widower-hood, or declining health and mobility, of ones' self or spouse.
Kelly, D., Steiner, A., Mason, H., & Teasdale, S. (2021). Men's sheds as an alternative healthcare route? A qualitative study of the impact of Men's sheds on user's health improvement behaviours. BMC public health, 21(1), 553. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-021-10585-3
Liang, Q.Z., & Luan, X. (2023). Prevalence of cognitive frailty among older adults in China: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ open, 13(4), e066630. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2022-066630
Thorpe, R. J., Jr, Huang, A., Smail, E., Clay, O. J., Dean, L., Aiken-Morgan, A., Gellert, A., & Rebok, G. W. (2023). The Relationship Between Cognition and Mortality Among Older Black and White Men in Advanced Cognitive Training for Independent and Vital Elderly. Journal of aging and health, 35(9_suppl), 119S–125S. https://doi.org/10.1177/08982643221128906 |
