Introduction
There are gender differences in health and illness, especially in physical symptoms. The reasons for these differences can be biological, psychological or social. The biological factors are understood in terms of the biological constructs of the male and female anatomy. The psychological factors depend on health behaviors, risky behaviors, help-seeking behaviors, and coping mechanisms. The social factors depend on social norms that vary in culture and society within a geographical location. (Ogden, 2017) Let’s consider why there are gender differences for some illnesses and symptoms and not for others.
Gender Differences in Illness and Physical Symptoms
According to Dr. Sohrabji (2017), gender is the interaction of the individual …show more content…
In recent years, it has been reported that men and women are dying around the same age whether it be at a younger age or older age. “The role of biological factors in gender differences is better understood in terms of statistics and research studies about illness and mortality in both sexes. This also includes reproductive function, concentrations of sexual hormones, the expression of genes on the X and Y chromosomes and their effects and higher percentage of body fat in women.” (Zagrosek, 2012) Male hormones cause aggressive behavior associated with risk-seeking and neglecting personal health, therefore, gender behavior can modify biological factors. While women hormones cause irritability, mood swings, depression, anxiety and tiredness. (WebMD, 2017) These biological factors in gender differences are changing over time and depend on where you live and your culture because of gender identity and how it has …show more content…
Although, there are some illnesses that have a distinction. It is important to understand that gender differences play a key role in health and illness and the possible reasons for the differences are due to biological factors as well as psychological factors.
References
- Ogden, J. (2017). The Psychology of Health and Illness: an open access course. Retrieved from: http://www.academia.edu/33995493/The_psychology_of_health_and_illness_an_open_access_course
- Sohrabji, Dr. Farida. (2017). Faculty of Medicine forum. How does disease affect men and women differently? Retrieved from: https://forum.facmedicine.com/threads/how-do-disease-affect-men-and-women-differently.32498/
- Olson, J. S., Hummer, R. A., & Harris, K. M. (2017). Gender and health behavior clustering among US young adults. Biodemography and social biology, 63(1), 3-20. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5351770/
- Masculinity. (2017) Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia, Retrieved from
There are gender differences in health and illness, especially in physical symptoms. The reasons for these differences can be biological, psychological or social. The biological factors are understood in terms of the biological constructs of the male and female anatomy. The psychological factors depend on health behaviors, risky behaviors, help-seeking behaviors, and coping mechanisms. The social factors depend on social norms that vary in culture and society within a geographical location. (Ogden, 2017) Let’s consider why there are gender differences for some illnesses and symptoms and not for others.
Gender Differences in Illness and Physical Symptoms
According to Dr. Sohrabji (2017), gender is the interaction of the individual …show more content…
In recent years, it has been reported that men and women are dying around the same age whether it be at a younger age or older age. “The role of biological factors in gender differences is better understood in terms of statistics and research studies about illness and mortality in both sexes. This also includes reproductive function, concentrations of sexual hormones, the expression of genes on the X and Y chromosomes and their effects and higher percentage of body fat in women.” (Zagrosek, 2012) Male hormones cause aggressive behavior associated with risk-seeking and neglecting personal health, therefore, gender behavior can modify biological factors. While women hormones cause irritability, mood swings, depression, anxiety and tiredness. (WebMD, 2017) These biological factors in gender differences are changing over time and depend on where you live and your culture because of gender identity and how it has …show more content…
Although, there are some illnesses that have a distinction. It is important to understand that gender differences play a key role in health and illness and the possible reasons for the differences are due to biological factors as well as psychological factors.
References
- Ogden, J. (2017). The Psychology of Health and Illness: an open access course. Retrieved from: http://www.academia.edu/33995493/The_psychology_of_health_and_illness_an_open_access_course
- Sohrabji, Dr. Farida. (2017). Faculty of Medicine forum. How does disease affect men and women differently? Retrieved from: https://forum.facmedicine.com/threads/how-do-disease-affect-men-and-women-differently.32498/
- Olson, J. S., Hummer, R. A., & Harris, K. M. (2017). Gender and health behavior clustering among US young adults. Biodemography and social biology, 63(1), 3-20. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5351770/
- Masculinity. (2017) Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia, Retrieved from