Are Men the Weaker Sex?

We can, thankfully, remove one threat to the future existence of the human male from our worry list: The male Y chromosome, after dwindling from its original robust size over millions of years, apparently has halted its disappearing act.

But don’t start cheering yet. Contrary to cultural assumptions that boys are stronger and sturdier, basic biological weaknesses are built into the male of our species. These frailties leave them more vulnerable than girls to life’s hazards, including environmental pollutants such as insecticides, lead and plasticizers that target their brains or hormones. Several studies suggest that boys are harmed in some ways by these chemical exposures that girls are not. It’s man’s fate, so to speak.

First of all, human males are disappearing. Mother Nature has always acknowledged and compensated for the fragility and loss of boys by arranging for more of them: 106 male births to 100 female newborns over the course of human history. (Humans are not unique in this setup: Male piglets, as an example, are conceived in greater proportion to compensate for being more likely than female piglets to die before birth.) But in recent decades, from the United States to Japan, from Canada to northern Europe, wherever researchers have looked, the rate of male newborns has declined. Examining U. S. records of births for the years between 1970 and 1990, they found 1.7 fewer boys per 1,000 than in decades and centuries past; Japan’s loss in the same decades was 3.7 boys.

Boys are also more than two-thirds more likely than girls to be born prematurely – before the 37th week of pregnancy. And, despite advances in public health, boys in the 1970s faced a 30 percent higher chance of death by their first birthday than girls; in contrast, back in the 1750s, they were 10 per cent more likely than girls to die so early in their lives.

Once they make it to childhood, boys face other challenges. They are more prone to a range of neurological disorders. Autism is notoriously higher among boys than girls: now nearly five times more likely, as tallied by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. They are more susceptible than girls to damage from very low-level exposure to lead. Yet another problem: Boys also suffer from asthma at higher rates. There’s also a stronger link between air pollution and autism in boys.

What is up here? Why do boys face such a burden of physical challenges?

The answer is that the male’s problems start in the womb: from his more complicated fetal development, to his genetic makeup, to how his hormones work.


http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/are-men-the-weaker-sex/


Plenty more to read and very fascinating

It IS very fascinating!
I have always thought that perhaps it was very simply, something to do with the fact girls have wombs and other bits that boys didn't? Don't know the science of WHY this would be.....?

No.

No matter how cocky a woman is - some do put on the very "laddish" front they will always crumble in to pathetic cry-babies when the going gets tough.

Seen it so many times. It isn't their fault, it's the fault of the militant equality PC front - a lot of women feel they have to be equal to men.

They are not!

Yea, and if men had babies the world would end.

BigAndy9 wrote:No.

No matter how cocky a woman is  - some do put on the very "laddish" front they will always crumble in to pathetic cry-babies when the going gets tough.

Seen it so many times.  It isn't their fault, it's the fault of the militant equality PC front - a lot of women feel they have to be equal to men.

They are not!

Actually there is more to inner strength than you men will ever know.
Women have to keep a house and all the people in it, together and happy.....
And that includes the man!

Sassy wrote:Yea, and if men had babies the world would end.

ok I knew somebody would have to say it

 ://?roflmao?/: 

Because it's a universal truth. Men would never cope with having their bodies ripped apart while had a bit of gas and air.

Sassy wrote:Because it's a universal truth.   Men would never cope with having their bodies ripped apart while had a bit of gas and air.

I'll give child birth might smart a bit but you will never know the full blown horror of Man Flu.

Ah Man Flu! You mean what men get when they don't want to help around the house    

Sassy wrote:Ah Man Flu!   You mean what men get when they don't want to help around the house    

I've had it loads of times and it hasn't changed me one bit!

talking to a nurse,she said kidney stones are worse than childbirth. i'v had 3 lots!

Something I've actually not had is kidney stones, but had gallstones, they hurt.   As I'm allergic to pain killers had two major tummy ops without pain relief, so my pain threshold is very high.

Males also suffer more from X-linked inherited disorders - haemophilia, colour blindness, and some other disorders.

YES !

gerber wrote:YES !

Up yer bum!

There was a recent article about Man Flu it really exists! It isn't mardy men trying to avoid the house work. We do that when we are well. :D :D