Today marks the country's sixth Men's Health Day, and, according to the nation's doctors, China's men could certainly take better care of themselves.

Nine out of 10 working men having check-ups at the Beijing Ciji Health Checkup Chain Institution were found to have health problems, according to a recent survey.

"These statistics show that men's health is not very good, and not enough attention is paid to the problem," said Qu Wei, from the institution.

Of the 100,513 men examined at the institution between June 2004 and September 2005, more than 90 pecent showed signs of ill health.

Prostate problems, obesity and fatty livers were the three most serious threats to men's health.

Altogether, 12,935 men, 12.89 percent of those examined, had enlarged prostates, 37.7 percent were obese, and 22,396, or 22.28 percent, had fatty livers.

The institution suggested men do regular exercise, get enough sleep and have regular medical examinations.

Some medical institutions have seized on men's virility as a way of encouraging healthy living.

Jinling Men's Hospital in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, recently issued a questionnaire investigating male patients' sex lives.

"Our results are not authoritative. We just want to give some advice and guidance to help people improve their quality of life," said Ma Jintao, head of the hospital.

The hospital received 313 returned questionnaires.

They found that some specific behaviours have a negative influence on men's sexual ability.

Smoking, drinking alcohol, watching TV for more than two hours a day, lack of sleep and not eating enough fresh fruit and vegetables all seem to be strongly linked to sexual dysfunction.

"The relationship between watching TV and sexual dysfunction is a new discovery and we will try to find out its scientific basis," Ma said.

"I heard that sitting in front of a computer for more than four hours a day might cause some health problems, but I never thought about the harm of watching TV," said Zhang Bo, a 29-year old man working in an office in Nanjing.

"We men think a lot about our work, family and everyday life but pay very little attention to our health. Some of us don't know about Men's Health Day," he said.

"The situation should be changed and we should pay more attention to our health," said Chen Hao, one of Zhang's male colleagues.

(China Daily October 28, 2005)