Movember begins

What the day is

Movember begins on November 1. Participants start the month clean-shaven and grow a mustache through November, using the visible change as a prompt for conversation and fundraising.

The rules are part of the point: a mustache only, not a beard, and no head start. An awkward second week is doing deliberate work.

Origin and background

The campaign began in Australia in the early 2000s, from a conversation among friends about reviving the mustache, and it acquired a charitable purpose almost immediately. It has since become a global men's health organization funding work on prostate cancer, testicular cancer, mental health and suicide prevention.

The health case behind it is well established. Men across most countries die earlier than women, are markedly less likely to attend a doctor for early symptoms, and account for the substantial majority of suicides in nearly every country that records the data. Prostate cancer is among the most common cancers in men, and testicular cancer, though rarer, is the most common cancer in younger men and is highly treatable when caught early.

What the mustache actually achieves is conversational. A visible, slightly ridiculous change invites comment, and the comment creates an opening to discuss subjects men are statistically reluctant to raise unprompted. That mechanism, rather than the money alone, is the campaign's stated purpose.

How to take part

• Shave clean on November 1 and register. Unregistered growing raises nothing.
• Commit to the mustache only. The beard is a different, easier month.
• Use the questions. When someone asks about it, say what it is for rather than deflecting.
• If growing is not for you, most campaigns have walking, running or hosting alternatives.
• Know the practical checks: testicular self-examination takes a minute, and prostate screening decisions are worth discussing with a doctor from around fifty, or earlier with family history or for Black men, who face higher risk.
• Ask a friend how he is actually doing, and then ask again.