Ask CNN: Why Do Women Live Longer Than Men?
LOU WILLCOXON, ATLANTA, GEORGIA: My name is Lou Willcoxon. I came from Atlanta, Georgia. And my question for CNN is: Why do women live longer than men?</s>DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: In the United States, the average life span for a woman is 79 years; for a man, 72 years. There are probably both evolutionary reasons as well as environmental reasons for this. First, throughout evolution, in order to preserve the human species, women not only had to bear children but also ensure that these children would grow to childbearing age. Men simply had to reproduce. While men no doubt were important to the preservation of individual families, they were less important to the preservation of the entire human species. Second, moving to a more modern day environmental reason, three of the most common things that lead to the demise of human beings affect men more than women. Men are more likely to fall victim to heart disease, cancer and trauma, thus, perhaps leading to a shorter life span.