Helping Husbands to be Healthier and Live Longer
If you are lovingly married, and not just “doing time” in your relationship, this article could be of interest to you. According to National Vital Statistics men die about 6 years earlier than women. When adjusted for age, gender, and race 29% more White males died earlier than White females and 33% more Black males died earlier than black females in 2005. This early death for men leaves wives to endure widowhood and loneliness for many years, except when they remarry.
Health and behavioral scientists have identified behavioral factors that might be contributing to differences in life expectancy between males and females. Behavioral attributes of primates, including humans that may contribute to early male death are generalized as: Males are more daring, engage in more risky and stress-producing endeavors. They are more territorial, like to assume dominant roles in social settings, more likely to fight or compete with other males to control resources, including territories and access to females. Males also tend to build hierarchical social order, more reactive, less cautious, and more involved in breaking up conflicts between lesser ranking males, females and juveniles. They are also less likely to adopt health-promoting behaviors. These behavioral attributes are known to have physiological effects that increase male vulnerability to unintentional injuries, illnesses and early death.
Conversely, females tend to live longer for the following reasons: They are more likely to be involved in parenting and nurturing because infants depend more on them for milk supply. They tend to be less driven by competition, less territorial or hierarchical, and tend to socialize with a wide range of persons. Females tend to be more cautious in mating, prefer males who are dominant and control the most resources. They are also less confronting, less combative, more conforming, nurturing, maintain social bonds, and more likely to adopt health-promoting behaviors. These attributes are known to have physiological effects that decrease vulnerability to unintentional injuries, illnesses, and prolong life for females.
Whether these attributes are due to differences in the ways that males and females are raised in our society, the reality is that husbands continue to die sooner than wives. It also challenges the happily married wife to help her husband to live longer with her in their relationship. Note: a healthy husband gets more fun out of life and is considerable more fun to live with. Below are suggestions for wives to help husbands live longer: