Posted on 03/08/2025 10:27:00 AM PST by nickcarraway
By understanding the reasons, scientists hope to help both sexes age better.
omen outlive men, by something of a long shot: In the United States, women have a life expectancy of about 80, compared to around 75 for men. This holds true regardless of where women live, how much money they make and many other factors. It’s even true for most other mammals. “It’s a very robust phenomenon all over the world, totally conserved in sickness, during famines, during epidemics, even during times of starvation,” said Dr Dena Dubal, a professor of neurology at the University of California, San Francisco.
But the reasons women live longer are complicated and less established – and the fact that they are outliving men doesn’t necessarily mean they are living better. Women tend to have shorter health spans (the number of healthy years a person lives) than men, said Berenice Benayoun, an associate professor at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. Women are generally more physically frail than men in old age; they’re also more vulnerable, particularly after menopause, to developing cardiovascular issues and Alzheimer’s disease, in part because age itself is a risk factor for those conditions, Dr Benayoun said. Scientists are trying to uncover the reasons men and women age differently in the hopes of extending life span and health span for both.
“If we can understand what makes one sex more resilient or vulnerable, then we have new pathways, new molecular understanding, for new therapeutics that could help one or both sexes also be resilient,” Dr Dubal said. Here’s what they know so far about what causes the longevity gap.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnalifestyle.channelnewsasia.com ...
A man can only take so much nagging.
Cue “Praying for the end of time “ refrain from Meatloaf’s Paradise from the Dashboard Lights.
successfully avoided a lot of violent situations and stupid impulses
Omgoodness, best be careful crossing any streets on a bus route
Not an answer to the question, but a statement of fact.
My mother’s life didn’t begin until Dad died. She was finally able to have an opinion, and not spend every waking moment walking on eggshells.
So she lived to 99, blossoming the last 16 years of her life. She wanted to stretch out the good years when she finally had some good years.
So maybe women just make a greater effort to live longer.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.