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Dr. James “Butch” Rosser says it’s all good to make dad feel special on Father’s Day, but it is important to create a family health tree to let him know you would like to see him celebrate many more Father’s Days.

“You must make your loved one intimately aware of the fact that all you do is because of your love for them,” Rosser said.

Rosser, also known as “Dr. Butch,” is a renowned laparoscopic surgeon, educator, scientist, inventor, author and television personality, known for his appearances on the Dr. Oz show.

Make sure your father figures know the top five most common men’s health issues: heart disease, stroke, suicide and depression, lung cancer and prostate cancer and ask about the family’s health history. Not only do you need this information to help the men in your family get and stay healthy, but especially if you are a man, you should know what you need to be aware of in your own personal health journey.

Because health discussions can be intimidating, Rosser recommends making the chart a family exercise to help reduce the fear factor and make the process less of a depressing process that looks for what’s wrong.

Dr. Butch’s Medical Family Tree allows family members to fill in names, birthdates, gender, and health issues.

The point, Rosser said, is to focus on the positive and chart a path to wellness.

“Father’s Day has a very special profile that garners an opportunity for a special moment of intimacy between you, your father or significant other,” Rosser wrote with Robyn M. Gardner, MHE, PA-C, in “A Father’s Day Conversation about Men’s Health and Constructing a Medical Family Tree.”

“This is because for the most part, dads do not shut it down for all the other holidays. Like Moms, on the other holidays they are inundated by a bucket list of tasks and responsibilities. From barbecuing on the Fourth of July to putting tricycles together and carving the turkey at Christmas, dads tend to focus on things other than themselves.”

On Father’s Day, however, it’s all about dads and they are “a captive audience to their special tribute.”

So asking fathers and male family members questions about the family health history, if done right, Rosser and Gardner wrote, “can help them be with you for a long time.”

Click here for answers to your “Get Well Wednesday” questions.

Show Dad Some Love: Expand Your Family Tree  was originally published on blackamericaweb.com