A Gender Lens on the Health and Well-being of Young Males

Adolescence brings a divergence in health status between males and females, one that persists throughout adult life [1]. For girls, puberty brings reproductive maturity and sexual and reproductive health to the foreground. In low-income settings, limited or no access to quality education and employment, early childbirth and marriage, and gender-based violence have profound effects on girls' health and well-being with consequences across the life course and into the next generation [1]. It is also a time of vulnerability for many mental disorders, including depression and anxiety syndromes, with effects on the quality of life of girls and young women that often continue across the reproductive years [2].