As we age, the differences between men and women increase and provide the first with better resources and opportunities to face the challenges of old age.
An analysis published in The Lancet Healthy Longevity magazine demonstrates how roles in society shape aging.
First of its kind, it analyzed data from 18 countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), highlighting how Italy is among the countries where women are most disadvantaged in aging.
Women in OECD countries have an average life expectancy of 3 years longer than men, but spend more years in poor health. Conversely, men are more likely to have a secure income or retirement. Researchers from Columbia University (USA) have identified 5 factors that influence the quality of aging: well-being and health; productivity through work or volunteering; equity of money and education resources; social integration and support; financial and physical security.
Then they calculated the overall index and individual factor scores (0 to 100) and compared these scores across genders and countries, noting that all societies make aging easier for men, favoring them by an average of 9 points over to women. Scandinavian countries and Japan score well for both genders on the overall index (at least 66 for men and at least 55 for women), while Eastern and Southern European countries are at the bottom of the rankings. Those with the greatest differences in scores between men and women were Italy (51 for men versus 39 for women), the Netherlands (70 versus 55), Austria (64 versus 51) and Denmark (70 versus 59). The US performance is average (55 for men versus 47 for women),along with other industrialized countries of Western Europe, such as the United Kingdom (57 to 47) and Germany (62 to 51). The data show, the authors explain, that "there is an urgent need to challenge the structural and political prejudices that favor men".
