Why do women live longer than men?



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Women around the world have a higher average age than men.

Life expectancy at birth for the world population was 72 in 2016, according to the World Health Organization. But when this average was broken down by sex, women were 74 years old and two months old, while men were 69 years old and eight months old.

According to the 2010 United States Census, 53,364 people passed the 100-year mark. Of these, only 9,162 were men, compared with 44,202 women. Let's look at three reasons:

1. Genes

The death index currently includes information on 40 countries, including Sweden and France, since 1751 and 1816. But information on countries such as Japan and Russia has only been available since the mid-20th century. The database of each year in all countries showed that the average life expectancy of women was higher than that of men. Men seem to be targeted from the outset because of their genetic makeup.

"Male fetuses die at a higher rate than female fetuses," said Professor David James of the Royal College of London. One of the possible causes can be attributed to the role played by some chromosomes of the species.

There are XX chromosomes in women and XY in men, and these chromosomes contain genes. X chromosomes contain many genes that help to survive.

"If you have a genetic defect in the X chromosome, then as a woman, you have a backup copy, unlike men, they do not have that reserve," David James told the BBC.

"Male fetuses are 20 to 30% more likely to die at the end of their pregnancy and 14% more likely to give birth prematurely," said Lorna Harris, a professor at Exeter University. This makes them more likely to be injured during childbirth. "In the world of birds, males have two versions of X chromosomes and live longer than females.

2.Hormones

In adolescence, boys and girls enter adult life according to hormonal changes. Testosterone, which makes the body bigger and stronger, is responsible for most of the qualities of masculinity – such as the depth of sound and the growth of chest hair.

Mortality rates in men are high during testosterone, which occurs in late adolescence. Experts say this can be attributed to men's immersion in high-risk activities such as fighting, driving bicycles and high-speed cars, as well as suicides.

A few years ago, the Korean scholar Han-nam Park analyzed the details of the archives of the imperial court of the royal family of Chosun in Korea in the 19th century. The researcher examined the details of the 81 "eunuch" records, that is, those whose testicles had been taken before puberty.

He concluded that eunuchs lived about 70 years against an average of 50 years for other men at court. Even three of these eunuchs swore their 100th birthday.

Although other studies on other types of eunuchs have not shown such obvious differences, it generally seems that humans (and animals) are covered with freckles and live longer. Estrogen, responsible for female libido, is considered an "antioxidant", that is, it combats the toxic chemicals responsible for cellular stress. Animal experiments have shown that, unlike men, women with estrogen deficiency live less than women who do not have the same problem. Spanish researchers presented in 2005 a study devoted to the association of estrogen with genes associated with longevity, including those related to antioxidant enzymes. Estrogens also facilitate the elimination of harmful cholesterol and therefore offer some protection against heart disease.

3. Occupation and behavior

In conflict areas, the average age of men is short. But in areas where health care is inadequate, some women die during childbirth. Factors such as smoking, alcoholism and overeating can partly explain why the gender gap varies from one country to another.

Russian men, for example, seem to live under the age of 13, partly because of excessive consumption of alcohol. But the superiority of women is not perfect: although women live longer, they suffer more from men than men, especially at older ages.

Women aged 16 to 60 tend to consult a doctor more than men of the same age group in different countries.

"In Western societies, women are seeing more doctors, taking more drugs, stopping work, and spending more days in hospital than men for health reasons," said Steven E. Ostad and Kathleen. E. Fisher of the University of Alabama in a report published in the journal BioPresse. Researchers have observed an increase in physical difficulties among older women than men in Bangladesh, China, Egypt, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Malaysia, Mexico, Philippines, Thailand and in Tunisia.

The gap heals

Recent studies indicate that the gender gap in the average age will decrease in the near future. According to a study from Imperial College London, the gap between men and women will only be one year and nine months by 2030 in the UK.

In the UK, the number of male births is expected to be 79 years and two months, compared with 82 years and nine months for female births, according to the National Statistics Office. Another study, led by Professor Liz Mayhew of the Cass Business School, revealed that the age of men and women would converge by 2032. "The overall decline in tobacco use and drug use is expected to continue in the 1990s. Alcohol has benefited men more because they tend to smoke and drink more than women, and we have made great progress in heart disease, which is more common among men than women. " With low road deaths, this helps to add more years to the age of men.

(ILLAF)


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