# What life expectancy would men have if they behaved like women? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 16, 2020, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-life-expectancy-would-men-have-if-they-behaved-like-women/923134 "2020-10-16T19:58:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2020, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-life-expectancy-would-men-have-if-they-behaved-like-women/923134/22 "2020-10-19T15:52:41Z")
A couple of useful open access papers: (1) A comprehensive analysis of mammals was published earlier this year. > **[Sex differences in adult lifespan and aging rates of mortality across wild...](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32205429/)** > > In human populations, women consistently outlive men, which suggests profound biological foundations for sex differences in survival. Quantifying whether such sex differences are also pervasive in wild mammals is a crucial challenge in both... (2) This fairly recent review (predating the above study) gives a lot of background. > **[Sex Differences in Lifespan - PubMed](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27304504/)** > > Sex differences in longevity can provide insights into novel mechanisms of aging, yet they have been little studied. Surprisingly, sex-specific longevity patterns are best known in wild animals. Evolutionary hypotheses accounting for longevity... There are so many possible genetic and environmental factors that I think it’s impossible to answer the OP’s question with any degree of certainty for humans. As the review article above says, it’s a little surprising that nobody has studied this phenomenon much in model organisms in the lab, where we can do carefully controlled experiments. ---
**Author:** ![Toxylon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f05b48/32.png) [@Toxylon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toxylon)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2020, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-life-expectancy-would-men-have-if-they-behaved-like-women/923134/23 "2020-10-19T20:37:49Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Ask Jim Fixx. Fatal heart attack while jogging at 52 years of age. Incessant jogging is risky behavior. Sports are not healthy, moderate exercise is. ---
**Author:** ![md-2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9d8465/32.png) [@md-2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md-2000)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2020, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-life-expectancy-would-men-have-if-they-behaved-like-women/923134/24 "2020-10-19T21:16:58Z")
One item I read said that women have a stronger immune system (statistically) than men, most likely due to the greater exposure to infection risks like childbirth. (Recall Semmelweis’ discovery that doctors should wash their hands with antibacterial soap came from the study of deaths in a maternity ward. I assume too the female reproductive system is more inviting (?) to assorted infections than the male. Plus testosterone, from what I’ve read, does put more stress on the body, which is why men are more prone to early heart attacks. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2020, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-life-expectancy-would-men-have-if-they-behaved-like-women/923134/25 "2020-10-19T22:14:57Z")
Yes, that is right. But monks don’t much drive recklessly or take drugs (alcohol, sure) or become members of gangs, I guess, so that could cancel that out. But I agree that is is not so clear cut as it seems, and one should factor in the average age of entry into cloisters as well, don’t know who starts earlier with that. And if you end up in _The Name of the Rose_, all bets are off. Don’t know a female equivalent for that, must broaden the authors I read. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2020, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-life-expectancy-would-men-have-if-they-behaved-like-women/923134/26 "2020-10-20T05:00:33Z")
> [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > Yes, that is right. But monks don’t much drive recklessly or take drugs (alcohol, sure) or become members of gangs, I guess, so that could cancel that out. I did say “all else being equalled as per the OP”, so yes, that means it’s like the situation they proposed _except for the pregnancy factor_, and so can’t be considered a good experiment setup. Most nuns enter cloisters without having kids, AFAIK. Figures I can find are [around 7%](https://www.globalsistersreport.org/news/spirituality/sisters-who-are-also-mothers-bring-new-perspectives-religious-life-39641) have had children before taking vows. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2020, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-life-expectancy-would-men-have-if-they-behaved-like-women/923134/27 "2020-10-20T07:07:27Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Most nuns enter cloisters without having kids, AFAIK. Figures I can find are [around 7%](https://www.globalsistersreport.org/news/spirituality/sisters-who-are-also-mothers-bring-new-perspectives-religious-life-39641) have had children before taking vows. There is however, [at least some evidence](https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/have-kids-live-longer-2017042411562#:~:text=Researchers%20collected%20data%20on%20everyone,1.5%20years%20longer%20for%20women.) that having kids is associated with living longer. The picture is not unanimous or well understood though. Of course the reasons for that (if true) may be down to factors that are common to the cloistered and well supported life of a nun but perhaps nuns are not particularly a best-case scenario. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2020, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-life-expectancy-would-men-have-if-they-behaved-like-women/923134/28 "2020-10-20T07:08:43Z")
Yeah, but that’s for both sexes so washes out. ---
**Author:** ![Kropotkin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kropotkin/32/18045_2.png) [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2020, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-life-expectancy-would-men-have-if-they-behaved-like-women/923134/29 "2020-10-20T16:38:47Z")
Do we need to strip out deaths from accidents at work, which are more common among men, and combat deaths? ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2020, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-life-expectancy-would-men-have-if-they-behaved-like-women/923134/30 "2020-10-20T16:57:49Z")
Hard to say. Men _ON THE WHOLE_ take more risks, are more violent, eat worse, drink and smoke, and are more prone to be overweight, sedentary and diabetic. Diabetes alone can chop years off life expectancy. But many individual women are also Type A, eat badly, drink and smoke (with more effect by weight) and are overweight, sedentary and diabetic. If you looked at a table comparing the percentage of men and women who are in a risky category the differences often are not enormous. My guess is that women are more social and have more supportive networks and natures. It is this difference that might account for differences. Women may have some protection against cardiac risks before menopause, but less so following that. Risks of cancer and parturition are also diffferent. Not dying young helps you live longer too. ---
**Author:** ![Fotheringay-Phipps](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d9b06d/32.png) [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2020, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-life-expectancy-would-men-have-if-they-behaved-like-women/923134/31 "2020-10-20T19:01:42Z")
It’s my understanding that the negative impact of size on life expectancy is somewhat controversial, but that some believe that the _entire_ difference in life expectancy between men and women could be accounted for by the difference in average size. (Of course, even if this is true - which it may well not be - there could still be a lot of other factors which influence differences in average life expectancy; just that under this hypothesis, all those other factors cancel each other out.) ---
**Author:** ![I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/i_love_me_vol.i/32/521_2.png) [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Love_Me_Vol.I)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2020, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-life-expectancy-would-men-have-if-they-behaved-like-women/923134/32 "2020-10-20T20:10:02Z")
> [@Toxylon](#): > > Incessant jogging is risky behavior. Sports are not healthy, moderate exercise is. I did not know that. Can you point me to the evidence for that? It is interesting. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2020, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-life-expectancy-would-men-have-if-they-behaved-like-women/923134/33 "2020-10-21T03:56:17Z")
Don’t have a link handy, but as an aside, Cuba has some of the longest life expectancies in the world despite basically being a Third World country. It’s believed that this is because so few people have automobiles. ---
**Author:** ![Kropotkin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kropotkin/32/18045_2.png) [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2020, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-life-expectancy-would-men-have-if-they-behaved-like-women/923134/34 "2020-10-21T16:44:17Z")
Cuba also has a lower infant mortality rate than the US, and this is a big factor in mortality stats. It also has less economic inequality, which is as important as absolute wealth as a health outcomes factor [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-life-expectancy-would-men-have-if-they-behaved-like-women/923134.md?page=1)