Latest research: Women live longer! Why is the gap in life expectancy between men and women getting bigger? Doctors say →

On March 30, a research report published in The Lancet by Zhou Maigeng's team from the Chronic Disease Center of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention and Bai Ruhai and Bai Zhenggang's team from the Center for Evidence-Based Social Science and Health Research of Nanjing University of Science and Technology predicted that:

It is estimated that by 2035, the average life expectancy in my country will reach 81.3 years, 85.1 years for women and 78.1 years for men.

The study found that the life expectancy gap between women and men in China is expected to increase from 6.2 years in 2019 to 7.0 years in 2035 .

By 2035, the gender gap in life expectancy will increase in all provinces except Tibet, Jilin and Guizhou.

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On April 8, the first author of the study, Bai Ruhai, an associate professor at the Center for Evidence-Based Social Science and Health Research at Nanjing University of Science and Technology, said in an interview with the People's Daily Health Client: "Our forecast results show that according to the current development trend, there is a high probability that the life expectancy growth target can be achieved.

The steady increase in life expectancy at the national level is associated with a reduction in mortality rates at all ages, such as infant mortality, mortality among children under five, and also with a decrease in mortality rates from cardiovascular diseases, chronic respiratory diseases, and tumors.”

In addition, the study believes that the increase in life expectancy in most provinces in the future will benefit from the increase in life expectancy of the elderly.

"Therefore, protecting the health of the elderly and establishing a complete elderly health service system is one way to extend life expectancy," Bai Ruhai told reporters.

01

Why is the life expectancy gap between men and women getting wider?

Hu Yang, deputy chief physician of the Respiratory Department of Shanghai Pulmonary Hospital, said: The life expectancy of women in my country is higher than that of men. Regardless of age, the all-cause mortality rate of men is higher than that of women. Correspondingly, the average life expectancy of men is also lower than that of women. In recent years, the difference has become even greater. It is not that the life expectancy of men has shortened and that of women has lengthened, but that both have increased, but women have increased more.

why is that?

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There are many reasons for this situation, such as men have greater pressure in life, more social engagements, and more frequent lifestyle habits that affect their health, such as smoking and drinking.

More importantly, there is a difference in the degree of attention paid to health between men and women. Relatively speaking, women pay more attention to health issues. When they find the same health problems, women are more willing to put down their work and take care of their bodies.

Men, on the other hand, choose to ignore it for the sake of their work and career, which is the reason why many minor illnesses develop into major ones, and also correspondingly slows down the growth rate of men’s life expectancy.

This can also be seen from some daily living habits. Whether in the family or the workplace, women are more likely to forward health information, while men are more likely to passively accept the push of such information.

Among people who usually take physical examinations, women account for a larger proportion, while men tend to delay as much as possible. This can also be reflected in the fact that the detection rate of lung nodules in women is higher than that in men. Lung nodules cannot be detected without physical examinations.

02

How can men catch up with women in life expectancy?

Peng Guoqiu, director of the psychosomatic medicine clinic at the Fourth Medical Center of the General Hospital of the People's Liberation Army, said: 30% to 40% of a person's life span is determined by innate genetic factors, and 60% to 70% is affected by the environment and acquired lifestyle.

Peng Guoqiu emphasized that if you want to live a long life, you must create good acquired conditions for yourself. In this regard, men should learn more from women.

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1. Develop good living habits

Compared with women, men have more bad living habits, such as smoking, alcoholism, irregular work and rest schedules, and unreasonable diet.

The Global Adult Tobacco Survey - China, jointly released by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, shows that:

The smoking rate among women in my country is 2.4%, while the smoking rate among men is as high as 52.9%. Smoking is an important risk factor for various chronic diseases and respiratory diseases.

A study published in the Chinese Journal of Epidemiology showed that the drinking rate among men aged 30 to 59 was over 60%, with the drinking rate among those aged 40 to 49 reaching as high as 63.7%, while the highest drinking rate among women of all age groups was only 14.4%.

In addition, women generally eat slowly, while men often eat fast or binge. Women also attend fewer social events than men.

suggestion:

▶Spend less time outside socializing and eat more often at home to avoid excessive intake of sugar, salt, and fat.

▶Quit bad habits such as smoking, drinking, and staying up late.

▶Eat more fresh fruits and vegetables, and eat some whole grains.

▶150 minutes of aerobic exercise per week (e.g. 30 minutes per day).

2. Learn to release your emotions

In addition to living habits, women also have advantages in releasing emotions. The best proof of this is “Men don’t shed tears easily.”

suggestion:

▶Learn to talk, release your emotions, and seek help.

▶When facing negative things and emotions, you might as well put aside the pride of "men don't shed tears easily" and show your weak side appropriately. This is more conducive to your physical and mental health, and also contributes to a virtuous cycle of work and life.

3. Pay attention to health and disease prevention

Men are more likely to be careless when it comes to their attitude towards illness, thus ignoring some signs of the disease, resulting in the disease being discovered in the late stages and missing the best period for treatment.

Even during illness, men's compliance and collaborative relationship with doctors are relatively poorer than women's.

suggestion:

▶ Pay more careful attention to your physical condition, and go to the hospital for examination in time if you feel unwell.

▶Develop the habit of regular physical examinations to prevent problems before they occur. If there is a problem, diagnose and treat it early to avoid missing the best treatment period.

4. Increase social participation

After entering old age, there is also a clear gap between the two sexes in terms of social participation.

The degree of social integration is low, which is not conducive to mental health.

In comparison, older women are more willing to integrate into the community, hang out with people around them, and are more likely to have positive emotions.

suggestion:

▶ Participate in more social group activities.

▶The improvement of physical capacity by exercise is secondary. What is more important is to let the elderly "exercise while socializing" and "socialize while exercising."

▶In interactions with peers or even young people, let life flow from the inside out, interact with each other, broaden your horizons, and no longer be limited to the empty nest.

Source: Health Times

Review: Li Nannan Director of Hunan Science Writers Association Deputy Director of Research and Publicity Department of Hunan Science and Technology Association Second-level Researcher Chinese Science Writer (Medical)

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