Today we stand in the times of Coronavirus, which has ensured its place in the history of humankind. Not just for being the biggest crisis after the Second World War, but for having altered the majority of landscapes forever. For men, it's likely to magnify suicidal impulses.
For us too it has some learning regarding male health, which is already at the bottom of the list of priorities of the government. With more men dying from Coronavirus the world over, one thing that has come to the fore is that when it comes to survival, men are the weaker sex. The innate biological advantages that women have over men suggests that the disproportionate toll Coronavirus is taking on men isn’t an anomaly.
Baby girls are consistently more likely to make it to their first birthday; 80 % of all centenarians today are women; an incredible 95 % of those who reach the formidable age of 110 years old are women. While on average genetic males have more muscle mass and greater height, overall size, and physical strength, when it comes to surviving the physical hardships encountered from birth to late-in-life, genetic females almost always outlast genetic males.
Why men often die earlier than women? – The X Factor
There has long been an assumption that the only reason behind the disproportionate demise of men was behavioural. But in fact, the female survival advantage between the sexes still holds, regardless of education, economic factors, and alcohol, drug, or tobacco consumption.
To understand what lies behind female genetic superiority, we need to start at the chromosomal level, in medical terms.
To review the typical basic chromosomal differences between the sexes: The cells of genetic females have two X chromosomes — one from their mothers, and one from their fathers — while those of genetic males have only the one X chromosome, from their mothers, and one Y chromosome.
This is crucial because X chromosomes come in handy for vital functions like building and maintaining the human brain and the immune system. And biologists have long understood that XX chromosomes give females an advantage in some arenas: Having the use of a spare X in case the other is somehow defective is why females are less susceptible to disorders like colour blindness, for instance.
But we’re only just now beginning to understand the full advantage that this extra X chromosome confers: It’s not just that women have a spare X chromosome to swap in. Rather, the more than 2,000 genes that, combined, makeup two X chromosomes, are used by cells that actually interact and cooperate within a woman’s body. Each cell predominantly uses one X chromosome over the other — so if one X chromosome has genes that are better at recognizing invading viruses like Covid-19, for instance, immune cells using that X can focus on that task, while immune cells using the other X chromosome focus on, say, killing cells infected with Covid-19 instead, making the fight against the virus more efficient.
Typical males, by contrast, are forced to get by in life with just the one X chromosome. What if a male’s particular genes aren’t able to competently recognize or kill off cells infected with a coronavirus? In that case, his ability to fight the infection will be limited; his solitary X is the only one he’s got.
The bottom line is when it comes to dealing with the trauma and stressors of life — whether it’s avoiding a serious congenital malformation, a developmental disability, or fighting off an infection — females have genetic options. And genetic males don’t.
Females don’t win only when it comes to overall longevity. Their risk for developing cancers in organs both male and female have is lower than male. And if a female does develop cancer, she has better odds of surviving, as research shows that women respond better than men to treatments.
And male sex chromosomes, by and large, determine their sex hormones — which also give a female an advantage: Higher levels of testosterone appear to suppress the immune system; conversely, estrogens have been found to stimulate a more vigorous immunological response.
Where do we stand?
But, without having any concern for anything, feminists are doing whatever they can as per their set, now customised for coronavirus propaganda. They know that the government is not leaving any stone unturned for the safety of corona worriers irrespective of gender, still, raising their voice, feminists have put forward their demand for better health facilities, hygiene products, social security, safety, and incentives for the women involved.
What about the men involved?
I leave it for you to think and analyze where we as stand and what is required especially when there are several diseases that are more commonly seen in men than in women.
Isn't this Coronavirus a wake-up call for us to take men's health seriously?
This article is an adaptation from the essay "Why Are So Many More Men Dying from Coronavirus?", published in The New York Times! Which also is an adaptation of Sharon Moalem's book "The Better Half: On the Genetic Superiority of Women". Sharon Moalem is a scientist, physician, and author.
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