Morbidity is measured as the incidence or prevalence of the presence of illness or injury. Health surveys demonstrate that women have higher morbidities of a wide range of health indicators than men, including physical illness, disability days, physician visits, and drug use. Men have higher rates of more serious chronic diseases and long-term disability due to chronic conditions leading to death. Injury rates are higher among younger men, but among the elderly, women have higher rates, par ticularly for mortality. There are a number of explanations for high morbidity in women and high mortality in men.On the other hand, women have genetic resistance to diseases such as those related to Xchromosomes. Women sex hormones protect them from cardiovascular morbidity until menopause, whereas men lack such protection and are thus more susceptible to cardiovascular morbidity 10 years earlier than women. The seemingly more advantageous biological protection for women’s mortality,In a review of literature, Verbrugge identified short& longterm morbidities and noted that in the short run women are more frequently sick, with higher rates of daily symptoms and higher incidence rates of acute illness. In the long run women have higher rates of numerous nonfatal chronic conditions that lead to abundant symptoms, disabilities, and medical care, but not to death. Men’s higher mortality is thus linked to higher rates of life-threatening chronic conditions, such as ischemic heart disease. Generally, there are varying biological susceptibilities to disease that expose men and women to differ- ent morbidities. For example, women’s unique reproductive health exposes them to specific morbid ity risks that are not present in men.
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