The Stronger Sex
By: A. S. Deller
Tags: Women, Science, Gender Equality, Health, Biology

Of the total population of humans on Earth, a little more than half (roughly 50.4%) are currently male. For as long as we can tell, going back at least to the 1700’s, this has always been the case.

Though women tend to live longer than men and have lower mortality across most age groups worldwide, the tradition of son preference found in many Asian and African cultures is what ultimately leads to the majority of males in the population.

Without the interference of son preference, in which sex-selective abortion and lower standards of medical care favor males over females, the ratio would be astonishingly close to 50/50, what genetics would predict based on the chances of conception. This Medium story on The Lily News goes into detail about son preference practice in India and the powerful negative effects the practice has and may present in the future.

What’s more, the sex ratio changes across age cohorts throughout the length of a human lifespan.

According to this study, early on in a pregnancy — in the first week — , more male embryos die than female embryos. This slight excess of male mortality recurs in the third trimester. However, during the remaining bulk of a pregnancy, nearly 2/3rds of it, mortality of female embryos and fetuses is slightly greater than that of males. This extended period of imbalance results in more male babies reaching term and being born, somewhere around 105–107 males to females.

After birth, however, a number of societal factors take over that tip the scales in favor of the feminine gender.

“Boys will be boys”. This common refrain is often heard immediately following the appearance of a bruised or crying young boy (or a bunch of them) as the result of a bout of roughhousing or fighting over toys. Boys, as a whole, are more likely to engage in rougher play than girls. This extends to a great tolerance and desire for risk-taking, as well.

According to this 2013 article:

The biggest gender gap was seen among those 15 to 19 years old, which was expected, Feudtner said. When it came to cause of death, injuries accounted for the biggest divide: Boys were more than twice as likely to die of an “external cause.”

Dr. Robert Schmerling, in this article from the Harvard Health Blog, details the following reasons why men tend to die earlier than women:

Men tend to act more rashly and with less aversion to risk, leading to higher death rates from violence, vehicular accidents, and sports. A higher proportion of men work in more dangerous professions. 50% more men die of heart disease than women, and men overall tend to be larger in body mass which contributes to other health problems. Men tend to avoid seeing doctors more than women, are less socially connected, and commit suicide at a higher rate.

According to Dr. Schmerling:

…since men tend to avoid medical care far more often than women, getting men to report symptoms (including depression) and go for regular follow-up for chronic medical problems (such as high blood pressure) could counter some of the tendency for them to die younger.

Though the population of the United States as a whole is changing rapidly in age composition, and will grow to over 410 million by the year 2060, the proportion of males to females is projected to stay roughly the same:

Source: Census.gov

While many of the reasons why men die sooner than women are tied intrinsically to male biology and brain chemistry, other factors are found across both genders, such as an increase in obesity across the board that raises risk of diabetes and heart conditions and common lifestyles that include sedentary work and large amounts of processed foods. We can do a lot to reduce the health problems created by lifestyle choice, however, and that will benefit men as well as women.

Women have a number a distinct advantages when it comes to survival. They are generally smarter, outperforming men in school and on IQ scales (as seen in a parade of studies, like this one, this one, and this one). Women also possess some baseline genetic advantages over men, and also get immune-boosting influence from estrogen. There is also evidence that women perform better under stress than male counterparts.

Throughout most of human history, women have consistently been the backbone of every society, from the smallest bands of hunters and gatherers to the larger agricultural populations of the Mediterranean, Asia and the Americas that arose ~10,000 years ago. Yes, men expended great effort and risked life and limb hunting, building and waging war, but the constant work of assuring that water and food were available, that children and livestock were tended to, that clothing and shelter were in good order — work that took up 16+ hours of every day — was most often handled completely by women.

For many people, it’s good to live in a time when more of the traditional gender tasks are being shared. Our roles will never “reverse”. Women and men will always have their specialties, but there is no reason why those specialties can’t be engaged in by both genders so long as the individual is capable enough.

Thank you for reading and sharing.