Gender is one of the most important socio-cultural factors influencing health and health-related behavior.  Although a large body of health research suggests that boys and men with similar social disadvantages as to girls and women experience poorer health outcomes in relation to disability, chronic illness, injury rates and mortality, boys' and men’s health is rarely deconstructed through the lens of gender.  The focus of this poster is to increase understanding of the ways in which masculinities intersect with other social determinants of health creating health disparities among boys and men which influence educational outcomes, and to provide direction for masculine affirming health interventions aimed specifically at boys and men.  With the goal of promoting the health of boys and men and decreasing health disparities, within the Canadian context, as well as internationally, an innovative theoretical framework for boys' and men’s health, 'Health, Illness, Men and Masculinities' (HIMM), based on the influence of masculinity throughout the life-course will be presented.  The HIMM Framework points to the need for research and theory development that moves us beyond a limited focus on any one individual boy or man to consider boys' and men’s health and illness practices in the larger social context  within which masculinity is defined and produced, including in schools. The HIMM framework provides direction for policy, education, health care delivery and health promotion initiatives aimed specifically at men in many locales, contexts and countries.

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