Scientists have shed light on the reasons why the difference in life expectancies and aging among men and women is shrinking. The life expectancy of people living in the Western world rose dramatically over the twentieth century, yet women still have a higher life expectancy than males do. Women in Finland have a lifespan that is five years superior than that of males on average.
In the 1970s, when life expectancy at birth was over 10 years greater for women than it was for males, the gender disparity between men and women was at its widest point. This disparity, on the other hand, has been much less pronounced during the last several decades.
What did the study find?
According to the findings of a research that was just just published in The Journals of Gerontology: Series A, the biological aging process is another area in which men and women age differently.
The purpose of the research was to determine whether or not there are gender-specific variations in the rate at which men and women age biologically and whether or not any putative differences can be explained by variables connected to lifestyle. Young individuals and adults of a more advanced age were studied to examine these distinctions.
Several different epigenetic clocks were used as descriptors of the aging process in biological systems. Epigenetic clocks make it possible to analyze the elements connected to longevity throughout the course of an individual’s lifetime. Using the levels of DNA methylation that are detected from the blood sample, they produce an estimate for the biological age in years. In older twins, the gender difference with aging might be explained by men’s greater propensity for smoking, but this was not the case in younger adult twins. In addition, the bigger body sizes of males accounted a tiny portion of the gender difference in both age groups.
The findings contribute to a better understanding of how biological aging and gender disparities are connected to differences in lifestyle habits and life expectancy. According to the findings, one of the reasons why there has been a narrowing of the gender difference in life expectancy over the last several decades is because fewer men are smoking.
