Why Men Die First - How to Lengthen Your Lifespan, First Edition

Why Men Die First - How to Lengthen Your Lifespan, First Edition

Author: MARIANNE J. LEGATO, M.D., F.A.C.P
Pages: 272

It’s time to talk about men—and in a whole new way, paying
close attention to unique male qualities, particularly those that
explain why at all ages, men die in greater numbers than women
do. Since the time I was a medical student, I never once remember
anyone asking why this is true; as one man said to
me recently, “I never thought about why. I thought it was a
given.”
If it’s true that men rule the world, it comes at a heavy cost.
Women survive and live almost a decade longer. It’s time to ask
about the nature of men’s vulnerabilities. Are they biological, that
is, inbuilt and unalterable, or a function of the roles men play and
how they play them? Men are trained not to complain, to shrug off
pain and injury, and never, never refuse to do the most dangerous
and difficult tasks required to keep societies stable. It turns out that
these elements, too, contribute to premature death.
The biggest surprise of all, perhaps, is that men, from conception
until death, are inherently more fragile and vulnerable
than women. In virtually every society in the world, men die
first. Women have a hardiness that men simply don’t possess. As
you will read about here, some of their vulnerability is the consequence
of biology, schooling, and socialization. Men are
expected to take risks. You go to war, you fight fires, bring order
to our cities, sail our ships, and build our buildings. We encourage
you to feats of daring and valor, and at the same time, we tell
you never, never complain of or even mention the pain you
might sustain in agreeing to do all these things. Certainly male
biology, particularly in youth, seems fit for these risks. The adolescent
and young adult male has a peculiar combination of
recklessness, conviction of invulnerability, and a willingness to
bear pain and deprivation. This combination can make men susceptible
to committing violence. Statistics show that murder and
homicide are among the top four killers of men from the time
they are born until heart disease and cancers begin to claim
those who survive into middle age.
The fundamental male biology makes you an underdog. You
are less likely to survive the womb than your sisters; you are six
weeks behind in developmental maturity at birth compared to
girls. Men have four times the developmental disabilities of
females. Men suffer more severely than women from seven of
the ten most common infections that humans experience, as
you simply don’t have the vigorous immune systems that
defend women. Men are likely to experience the first ravages of
coronary artery disease in their mid-thirties, a full 15 or 20 years
before women. And twice as many men die of the disease than
do women.
One of the most important issues that face us all is the subject
of depression: Women are said to suffer from this disease twice as
often as men in virtually every country in the world. I think this is
because men hide their pain. Women are permitted to talk about
their sadness, to consult their friends and advisors about the
experiences they have and how to deal with them. They seek and
get counseling more often than their brothers. Men are forbidden
this luxury: “Suck it up,” men are told by their parents, teachers,
and sports instructors—and by the commanders who send them
into battle. I have asked many men if they think women underestimate
the extent and depth of their sadness and the resounding
answer is “yes.”

It is time to spend some concentrated thought on you, on
what in your biology makes you unique, and on how society
conditions and trains you. It is time to think about how we can
protect you from premature, violent death and debilitating
illness.

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