Here's why men put off doctor visits

Apparently, men and doctors just don't mix. According to a new survey, men shy away from stethoscopes the way vampires recoil from crosses.

The Orlando Health survey found that the top excuse men make to avoid scheduling annual appointments with their primary care physician is that they are too busy.

The survey showed that the second most common excuse men make is that they are afraid of finding out something might be wrong with them. Men also say that they are uncomfortable with certain body exams such as prostate checks, which rounds up the top three excuses.

The two doctors who launched the Drive for Men's Health campaign say they've heard those excuses and plenty more. That's why urologic robotic surgeons Dr. Jamin Brahmbhatt and Dr. Sijo Parekattil are driving cross country to challenge men to stop making excuses and start making changes.

"Men can spend 3­4 hours golfing or watching a ball game every week, or find the time to take a trip to Vegas with their buddies, but they can't spare 90 minutes a year to get a check up? That's inexcusable," said Brahmbhatt. "As men, we need to make our health more of a priority, and that's what the Drive for Men's Health campaign is all about."

On June 9, Brahmbhatt and Parekattil, the other Co Director of the PUR Clinic, hopped into an electric Tesla model S, and embarked on the 3rd annual Drive for Men's Health, a 10 ­day, 6,000 mile coast­to­coast journey that will take them from Orlando, Florida through New York City and will end in Los Angeles, on June 18.

Along the way, the pair will make dozens of stops and will use social media throughout the roadtrip to engage followers worldwide to talk about men's health issues.

"One of the biggest reasons for those statistics, is that women are much more proactive about their health than men," said Brahmbhatt. "We often use the analogy that our bodies are a lot like our cars? men will take the time to do preventative maintenance on their cars, like getting tune ups and oil changes, but for whatever reason, we often don't take the same care of our bodies. We need to change that mindset.