May 24, 2006 01:40 AM
Why Women Outlive Men
Most people know that the average life expectancy for a woman today is several years more than the life expectancy for a man. But why exactly is this true?
As more of my friends' fathers than mothers have been passing away lately, I began to wonder why women are outliving men. (The female life expectancy in the U.S. is 77.9, while for men it's 72.7.) I found this article--Why Do Women Live Longer? - CBS News--which outlined some of the factors that make this statistic true. They include:
- Men engage in riskier behavior that may result in death. This includes, for instance, driving at higher speeds. More men than women are killed in car accidents.
- Men also engage in more violent behavior than women. This includes homicide and suicide.
- Safer childbirths mean less birth-related deaths for women. Maternal mortality was fairly common in the early 20th century.
I, however, prefer my mother's theory on why women live longer than men: because we're just better : ) (My mom is a poor old lady with Alzheimer's Disease--please don't diss her!)
Comments
Why do most me die before their wives?
Because they want to.
;)
Posted by: guppyman at May 24, 2006 02:48 PM
Two things...
1) Once we can get rid of the "problem", we can live longer.
2) Women live longer because we're SMARTER. And because we are more RESILIENT. And because we take better care of ourselves and are more in tune with our bodies.
When my last daughter was born, she was a micro-preemie. Weighing in at 1 lb. and 15 oz., her chances weren't great. But, I was told by the nurses in the NICU that girl babies in that situation do substantially better than boy babies. And over the next two months, that information was borne out by what I, myself, observed. The girls got stronger faster and learned the skills they needed to survive faster, than the boys did. I imagine it's something that stays with them all their lives.
Considering the crap we have to put up with, I think it's only fair.
Posted by: Tammy at May 24, 2006 04:19 PM
