A new study from Denmark and Germany shows that women have a survival advantage over men even under the harshest conditions of life, including famines and epidemics. Women outlived men by an average of six months to four years during seven cataclysmic historical events between 1772 and 1939, with most of the advantage related to infant mortality.
It is common knowledge that women often live longer than men. And a new study from Denmark and Germany further underlines this fact. Even under the harshest conditions of life, including severe famines and uncontrolled epidemics, women still have a survival advantage over men. Researchers at the University of Southern Denmark looked at death rates during seven cataclysmic historical events that occurred between 1772 and 1939. They found that during these particularly difficult times, women outlived men by an average of six months to four years .
When the game is hard:
The study examined data from events such as the Great Irish Famine (1845-1849), the measles epidemics in Iceland (1846 and 1882), and slavery in Trinidad in the early 19th century.
During the Great Famine, for example, life expectancy for women fell to an average of 22.4 years, while for men it fell even lower, to 18.7 years. Before the famine hit, life expectancy for both sexes was around 38 years.
Most of the survival advantage women had during a crisis was related to infant mortality. The study showed that girls survive harsh conditions better than boys.
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