MSGID: 1:317/3 6406bde8   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    Greater gender equality helps both women and men live longer    
      
     Date:   
         March 6, 2023   
     Source:   
         George Institute for Global Health   
     Summary:   
         The first global study to investigate how gender equality may be   
         associated with life expectancy has found that both women and men   
         live longer as it improves.   
      
      
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   FULL STORY   
   ==========================================================================   
   The first global study to investigate how gender equality may be   
   associated with life expectancy has found that both women and men live   
   longer as it improves.   
      
      
   ==========================================================================   
   However, variations between countries grouped into regions according to   
   socioeconomic development and geographic proximity suggest that while   
   mainly benefitting women's lives and health at first, progress in gender   
   equality helps men to live longer too, eventually narrowing the gender   
   gap in life expectancy.   
      
   Lead author Dr Cat Pinho-Gomes, Honorary Research Fellow at The George   
   Institute for Global Health, UK in partnership with Imperial College   
   London, said the results -- published in the lead up to International   
   Women's Day - - suggest that addressing longstanding gender inequality   
   and empowering women might help extend longevity for both women and men.   
      
   "Many of the factors that determine how long you will live -- like   
   working and living conditions, exposure to pollution, access to health   
   care, education, income, and social support -- are layered with gender   
   differences around the world," she said.   
      
   "As countries make greater progress towards gender equality and women   
   are afforded the opportunity to participate more fully in in political,   
   economic, and social life, the whole of society reaps the rewards."   
   According to the latest report by the World Economic Forum, global events   
   such as the rising cost of living, the COVID-19 pandemic, the climate   
   emergency and large-scale conflict and displacement are stalling progress   
   towards gender parity. This may, in turn, jeopardise socioeconomic   
   development and improvement in living and working conditions, curbing   
   the gains in life expectancy that have occurred over the past decades.   
      
   To investigate whether gender equality was associated with life expectancy   
   (LE) for women and men and assess the gender gap in life expectancy   
   across the globe, the researchers used a modified global gender gap index   
   (mGGGI), based on the index developed by the World Economic Forum (WEF),   
   and applied it across 156 countries between 2010 and 2021.   
      
   The WEF's Global Gender Gap Index benchmarks the current state and   
   evolution of gender parity across four key dimensions (Economic   
   Participation and Opportunity, Educational Attainment, Health and   
   Survival, and Political Empowerment). For this study, the health dimension   
   was excluded because it includes healthy life expectancy, which was the   
   subject of this study.   
      
   Among the three dimensions included in this study (i.e., political,   
   economic, and educational), gender equality in education had the strongest   
   association with longer LE for both women and men.   
      
   "This suggests investing in education is paramount, particularly in low-   
   and middle-income countries, where many girls are still denied access   
   to education and resources are limited," added Dr Pinho-Gomes.   
      
   "Even high-income countries -- where substantial progress has been   
   made to address gender inequalities in recent years -- investing in   
   gender equality may still benefit life expectancy, particularly for   
   men. This study confirmed what we had already seen for countries in the   
   EU using a different index, reinforcing the validity of our findings."   
   "The weaker association between gender equality in the political domain   
   and the gender gap in LE raises concerns about how gender equality is   
   being implemented by political systems worldwide," she said.   
      
   "As we've seen from the recent resignations of high-profile female   
   politicians, women still experience significant challenges in this field,   
   including discrimination, balancing private, family and political life,   
   gaining support from political parties, and securing campaign funding."   
   Overall, in 2021, each ten percent increase in the mGGGI was associated   
   with a 4.3-month increase in women's LE and a 3.5-month increase in men's   
   LE, leading to an 8-month wider gender gap, but there was considerable   
   variation between geographical regions.   
      
   "Our study has important implications for policy makers across the globe,   
   particularly as the world gradually recovers from the myriad shocks   
   caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, which had a gendered impact across   
   multiple domains of life," added Dr Pinho-Gomes.   
      
   "This International Women's Day, let's not forget that the evidence   
   demonstrates that enhancing women's representation across multiple   
   sectors contributes to wealthier and, hence, healthier societies for all."   
       * RELATED_TOPICS   
             o Health_&_Medicine   
                   # Menopause # Fitness # Women's_Health   
             o Mind_&_Brain   
                   # Gender_Difference # Social_Psychology # Relationships   
             o Science_&_Society   
                   # STEM_Education # Education_and_Employment #   
                   Political_Science   
       * RELATED_TERMS   
             o Misogyny o Fertility o Longevity o Laughter o Estrogen o   
             Breast_cancer o Hair o Testosterone   
      
   ==========================================================================   
   Story Source: Materials provided by   
   George_Institute_for_Global_Health. Note: Content may be edited for   
   style and length.   
      
      
   ==========================================================================   
   Journal Reference:   
      1. Ana-Catarina Pinho-Gomes, Sanne A. E. Peters, Mark Woodward. Gender   
         equality related to gender differences in life expectancy across   
         the globe gender equality and life expectancy. PLOS Global Public   
         Health, 2023; 3 (3): e0001214 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0001214   
   ==========================================================================   
      
   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/03/230306143509.htm   
      
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