Why women live longer than men?”

Body Matters

Numerous people, psychologists, literary critics, scientists, doctors and many more have tried to answer this question. They seem to be providing an unsatisfactory answer because people come up with statistics to prove them wrong medically or psychologically. It has been noted how females have a seven year longer life span than males. “136:100” is the average ratio of women to men in elder age of 65 living (Kathleen et al, 2011). Other statistics also include how females have longer and better lifestyles than men. At the age of 85, there are four women living as opposed to a single man (Shukraj, 2006). Women might have a health decline but they tend to stay alive longer than men in all circumstances. The impacts on women might be biological, nutritional, psychological or even societal; women live longer than men all over the world. It has also been noticed that men might end their lives because of certain pressures and these men contribute to the theory that women live longer than men. At the age of 100 and above, there are two women living as opposed to a single man. This ratio may vary in different regions of the world however it can be considered an average ratio. Let us have a look at the books written by psychologists and analysts regarding the answer of this question.

                                                                             

Sociological factors

It has been stated how women live a better and longer life as compared to men because of a “combination of biological and sociological factors” (Tischler, 2004). Men have been noticed to develop bad habits such as smoking, drug addiction, drinking etc. more as compared to women. Furthermore, the men often start working in hazardous work places such as mines and in atmospheres which involves guns and other weapons. These weapons and such environments may lead to lung cancer, from which women are often prevented because they work in clean ambiances. Since men are more prone to accidental deaths, lung diseases and homicides, they have a higher death rate than women. In the society, not all women need to work while all men are expected to do so. Having higher rate of earning responsibilities may also lead to pressure and mental disorders in men which are not found in women.

Other analysts have also stated that women live longer than men because “they enjoy a higher quality of life in terms of health” (Saltzman Chafetz, 2006). This again refers to the fact that women often do not work in hazardous work places and do not smoke at a higher rate as compared to men.

But all these conclusions are very circumstantial. There are women who die before the men in their lives because of their drug addiction issues or other health disabilities. However the statistics have shown how there are very few women who would do so. Plus, women are more concerned with their health issues and fitness in comparison to men.

It has been noticed how analysts say that women live longer than men not because of certain genetic concerns but because of the different sociological lifestyles they lead. “Women just have it easier” (Budryes, 2010). This is a very common notion by men who lead working lives. The women do not have all the financial responsibilities on them as men do, make men hand out this remark. The men have “high-stress careers” which make them mentally tired and therefore their life expectancy becomes less than women (Baumeister, 2010).  

It has been stated how women tend to live a longer and better life because of the impact of feminists. There are feminists to support the health illness centers and other problems for females while men stay abandoned. There are gender bias centers found all over the world which provide better facilities including medical treatments and discounts in these financials for women only. There are feminist centers all over the world which support finances of women who cannot afford expensive medical treatments.

These women are then treated in the best rated hospitals and have to pay nothing at all because feminists have covered all their expenses. On the contrary, there are no particular organizations to look after men. Men have to earn their own expenses and therefore when they don’t have enough money for medical treatments, they are left to die (Lie et al, 2013).

There are other factors which lead to better state of women. The fact that women have been granted with parental support and alimony even after divorce leads to a better and healthy lifestyle. Even after the women has had divorced, she does not have to work and earn for her children. It is their husbands who have to provide food and shelter for their children in all cultures. In America and Asian countries, this is a law that needs to be abided by all divorced parents. The men are never granted freedom of earning even after leaving their wives and therefore the financial pressure and stress is experienced by them (Wilson, 2009).

Biological factors

There are answers provided from doctors and analysts regarding this question after they have examined all biological factors including health and mental states of men and women.

At a certain age during menopause, women stop developing their sex hormones called estrogen. When there is deficiency in the creation of this hormone, men are still building up their sex hormone androgen. Due to the presence of this hormone in the body of men, they are more likely to suffer from “sex-specific diseases” such as “cancer of the prostate”. (Chamberlain et al, 2006). Since men are prone to such vital diseases, they often die quicker than women. Further it has been researched how women suffer from more health issues which are non-fatal however men suffer mostly from fatal diseases and end up dying.

It has been noted how women live longer than men but in bad health. While women tend to suffer from diabetes and blood pressure diseases, men live a healthy life and die out of sudden causes frequently. The reasons for women living longer than men cannot be defined into bullet points as there are contradictions found in all studies laid by the learned ones. It has been noted how women having bad health issues are treated in worse conditions as compared to men. Still, these women tend to live longer (Unger, 2001).

There are other studies that have been carried out to determine other biological factors of women living more than men. One reason can be because of the birthrate. Women have a higher birth rate than men. In most cases of miscarriage, male fetuses are the ones that have died (Taylor, 2003). Although there haven’t been specified reasons for this matter, but statistics are there to prove this factor right.

Biologists suggest how women live longer than men because of their gender categories. It has been revealed gender has a positive or negative impact on the health issues. Sex effects the life spans of human beings as there are different hormones being produced in males as well as females which might lead to better or worse health conditions (Weitz, 2004). Furthermore, it can be stated that the sex leads to difference in lifestyles and therefore females have a rather better and safe lifestyle than males. Therefore the life spans of women becomes more than that of men.

Psychological factors

There can be certain psychological factors stated why men might commit suicide and have a death rate higher than women. Because men have higher financial pressures and expectancy to earn, in case of financial crisis they think suicide is the ultimate freedom (Taylor, 2003). Women also experience depression, psychological insecurities and become victims to domestic violence (Weiner, 2003). Although all these psychosocial factors might lead to their deaths, women are capable of overcoming all these issues because they are mentally stronger as compared to men. Women have more tolerance and patience in them as compared to men therefore at a time of decline; women are more likely to overcome everything while men stayed buried in their depressions.  

Women have psychological attachments to their children as well as parents. They tend to keep themselves fit for looking after their children and parents in elderly age. In order to do so, they train themselves psychologically to live healthily and stay fit for others they love. They tend to visit their doctors and therapists in order to maintain their psychological as well as physical health to serve the ones they love. On the other hand, men are more insensitive regarding these responsibilities. They just feel they have to provide for people by financial matters and if they feel the pressure has become more than they can handle, they end their lives by committing suicide. Therefore, men have lesser life spans and women lead better psychological states than men (Beth et al, 2009).

Nutritional factors

Women are prone to have longer life spans because the importance they pay to their nutritional values. Women tend to “recognize nutrition as important to their health” and they make changes in their diet plans because they want to stay healthy and without diseases in their elder age (Wolinsky, 2004). While men indulge themselves in drugs, smoking habits and drinking at an elder age, women recognize the importance of their nutritional values.

Women have all kinds of alternatives prescribed by their doctors for the nutrition they are losing. For example, they are prescribed with folate in pregnancy, calcium and iron bearing ingredients at elder ages, soy when estrogen is not building up etc. (Keegan, 2002). On the other hand, men do not have specified alternatives, they have to survive on their own and therefore they have less nutritional impacts on their lives. Men do not really care if their lungs are damaged because of their drinking habits and smoking habits.

They would rather have pleasure of smoking than taking healthy foods. Men often also submit to these habits because of being tired of handling all financial issues and responsibilities laid by the society on them. While women just have to look after their family and stay home in almost all the cultures of the world.

Furthermore, even nutrition seems to be “sex-based” (Wendy, 2008). Doctors and biologists have made more research on the female sex as compared to male sex. Doctors and therapists know more about women than they know about men. There are all kinds of therapies, medicines and treatments available for women in all age groups but for men, not all doctors have the answers. There are men who suffer from the same diseases like women but since they have difference in biological build-up, they cannot be given the same medicines. Researchers have not made enough research on men like they have on women. Therefore, there is always second guessing in providing the men with medicines doctors have prescribed.

Women have been granted the benefit of having family doctors who prescribe them with new and improved drugs as soon as they start aging while men have nobody to look after them. Although men might take the same good food like women, they often relax when it comes to the regularity of intake of this food.

Women have families and friends looking after their nutritional values while men need wives. In most cases, wives are more concerned about their fitness than that of their husbands. Therefore, the ratio of men dying because of bad health is more than that of women.

Men often indulge in activities such as drinking because of the company they spend their time in. at an elderly age, men need someone to look after their nutritional concerns. When they are not given an apple each day or medicinal drugs on regular basis, they tend to look for pleasure in bad eating. Instead of having fruits and vegetables, they tend to get absorbed in junk food and drinking. Therefore, they do not follow good diet charts and are careless regarding their health.

Conclusion

There are all kinds of studies taking place in all over the world to determine whether men live longer than women or vice versa. Up till now, it has been deduced how women lead a longer life as compared to men. However, it is nearly impossible to determine the reasons for this factor. There has been advancement in technologies to determine why women live longer. There are biological, sociological, nutritional as well as psychological conclusions drawn to support the theory that women live longer lives than men. However, everything seems to be circumstantial. Where there are better medical facilities for women, there are those who are brutally killed by their families. While women have less financial pressures, there are those who are the only ones earning and providing for their families. While there are women who are psychologically fresh have depression fits and tend to commit suicide.

There are men who generally don’t look after their health and nutrition and there are those who are very much concerned with staying physically and mentally fit. There are men who get doctors who prescribe them with medicines and vitamins after reaching certain age. There are women who indulge themselves in drinking and other horrible habits and die because of drug-overdose.

There are all kinds of problems faced by men as well as women. Men might be suffering from the same issues as women in certain regions of the world and vice versa. Health issues, psychological issues and societal issues might lead to the death of both sexes. Everything regarding this theory seems circumstantial. However, it has been statistically proved that women have a longer time span than men.