There are certain health conditions that have different manifestations in men and women due to biological, social and lifestyle factors.
Also, some health conditions like osteoporosis and urinary tract infections are peculiar to women while men are more susceptible to lung and colorectal cancers, reports Nigerian Tribune.
Symptoms of conditions like heart attacks and strokes vary between genders, basically due to biological differences and hormonal variations. This is because hormones like estrogen and testosterone influence disease susceptibility, progression and treatment outcomes while estrogen’s anti-inflammatory properties may protect women from some infections and cardiovascular diseases; it also contributes to higher rates of autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis.
The presence of the X and Y chromosomes impacts genetic pathways and can affect disease risk and progression while differences in anatomical structures like the length of the urethra in women can make them more prone to certain infections.
And lifestyle choices: social and behavioral factors like smoking, excessive alcohol consumption and stress levels which are often more prevalent among men, can increase their risk for specific conditions.
Conditions that affect women differently from men include:
Heart Attack: The common heart attack sign of feeling like there’s an elephant sitting on your chest isn’t as common in women as it is in men. Many women feel upper back pressure, jaw pain and shortness of breath or nausea and dizziness instead. Though heart disease is the leading cause of death for both genders, women are more likely to die after they have a heart attack.
Multiple Sclerosis: This affects the immune system and is often more severe in men. While it affects many more women than men but in cases of primary progressive form (PPMS), men get it in equal numbers to women. PPMS tends to be harder to diagnose and treat than the relapsing-remitting form of MS.
Stroke: Nearly 55,000 more women than men have strokes each year with common symptoms like sudden weakness on one side, loss of speech and balance as well as confusion. But women often have additional or different symptoms like fainting, agitation, hallucinations, vomiting, pain, hiccups, and seizures. Women typically have a worse recovery after a stroke, too.
STDs: Women are less likely to have symptoms with s3xually transmitted diseases (STDs) like chlamydia and gonorrhea. STDs can also lead to chronic pelvic inflammatory disease in women, causing fertility issues. Men seldom have such complications. The human papillomavirus (HPV) is also the main cause of cervical cancer in women.
Acne: Hormones are often to blame for acne. Because women’s hormones shift during periods, pregnancy and throughout menopause, they are more prone to adult acne than men. Treatment can vary based on your s3x, too. Doctors tend to prescribe medications that control hormones, like birth control, for women. Creams that you rub onto your skin are more common for men.
Stress: Women are more likely to be stressed than men. Both sexes feel anger, crankiness and muscle tension at near the same rates from stress but women more often say it causes a headache, upset stomach, or makes them feel like they need to cry. Men are less likely to feel physical symptoms during times of stress than women.
Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs): Although women tend to get urinary tract infections (UTIs) more often, men’s UTIs are more complicated. They have different causes, too. Women most often get them because of bacteria from sex or poop (their urethra is shorter and closer to that area). Men’s UTIs are more likely to arise from something that blocks their urine stream, like an enlarged prostate or kidney stones.
Pain: More women live with chronic pain (pain that lasts longer than 6 months and doesn’t seem to respond to treatment) than men. Their pain also tends to last longer and be more intense. Doctors are still trying to figure out why, but they think differences in hormones between the sexes may be to blame.
Osteoporosis: Because women are more likely to get osteoporosis, it’s often overlooked in men. But men who have this lack of bone density and break a hip are twice as likely to die from it as women with osteoporosis who break a hip.
Also, due to estrogen, women tend to have stronger immune systems than men.
