Everywhere in the world women live longer than men - but this was not always the case. The available data from rich countries shows that women didn't live longer than men in the 19th century. Why do women live so much longer than men today, and why does this benefit increase over time? We have only a small amount of evidence and the evidence isn't sufficient to support an unambiguous conclusion. We know there are behavioral, biological and environmental variables that play an integral role in women who live longer than males, we aren't sure what percentage each factor plays in.
In spite of the precise amount, we can say that at a minimum, the reason women live so much longer than men in the present but not in the past, is to do with the fact that a number of key non-biological factors have changed. These variables are evolving. Some are well known and relatively straightforward, like the fact that men smoke more often. There are others that are more intricate. For example, there is evidence that in rich countries the female advantage increased in part because infectious diseases used to affect women disproportionately a century ago, so advances in medicine that reduced the long-term health burden from infectious diseases, especially for survivors, ended up raising women's longevity disproportionately.
Everywhere in the world women tend to live longer than men
The first chart below shows life expectancy at birth for men and Www.watercase.org/index.php?title=Why_Are_Women_Living_Longer_Than_Men (www.times-press.com) women. As you can see, all countries are above the diagonal parity line , which means that in every country a newborn girl can expect to live longer than a newborn boy.1
This chart illustrates that, even though women enjoy an advantage throughout the world, the differences between countries can be significant. In Russia, women live 10 years more than men. In Bhutan the gap is less that half a year.
__S.17__
__S.19__
In the richer countries, the women's advantage in longevity was previously smaller.
Let's now look at how the gender advantage in terms of longevity has changed over time. The chart below shows gender-based and female-specific life expectancy at the time of birth in the US in the years 1790 to 2014. Two distinct points stand out.
There is an upward trend. Women and men in America have longer lives than they used to 100 years ago. This is in line with historical increases in life expectancy everywhere in the world.
There is an increasing gap: The female advantage in life expectancy used be quite small, but it grew substantially during the last century.
When you click on the option "Change country in the chart, you are able to verify that these two points apply to other countries that have available data: Sweden, France and the UK.
In spite of the precise amount, we can say that at a minimum, the reason women live so much longer than men in the present but not in the past, is to do with the fact that a number of key non-biological factors have changed. These variables are evolving. Some are well known and relatively straightforward, like the fact that men smoke more often. There are others that are more intricate. For example, there is evidence that in rich countries the female advantage increased in part because infectious diseases used to affect women disproportionately a century ago, so advances in medicine that reduced the long-term health burden from infectious diseases, especially for survivors, ended up raising women's longevity disproportionately.
Everywhere in the world women tend to live longer than men
The first chart below shows life expectancy at birth for men and Www.watercase.org/index.php?title=Why_Are_Women_Living_Longer_Than_Men (www.times-press.com) women. As you can see, all countries are above the diagonal parity line , which means that in every country a newborn girl can expect to live longer than a newborn boy.1
This chart illustrates that, even though women enjoy an advantage throughout the world, the differences between countries can be significant. In Russia, women live 10 years more than men. In Bhutan the gap is less that half a year.
__S.17__
__S.19__
In the richer countries, the women's advantage in longevity was previously smaller.
Let's now look at how the gender advantage in terms of longevity has changed over time. The chart below shows gender-based and female-specific life expectancy at the time of birth in the US in the years 1790 to 2014. Two distinct points stand out.
There is an upward trend. Women and men in America have longer lives than they used to 100 years ago. This is in line with historical increases in life expectancy everywhere in the world.
There is an increasing gap: The female advantage in life expectancy used be quite small, but it grew substantially during the last century.
When you click on the option "Change country in the chart, you are able to verify that these two points apply to other countries that have available data: Sweden, France and the UK.