Men are more likely to die at a young age than women, and throughout the world, risky, preventable behaviors elevate their mortality rates to levels far above those of women in the same age group. In a June 2006 study, British researchers examined patterns of mortality among men and women from 44 countries. Their results, published in the Journal of Men’s Health and Gender, demonstrate that poor lifestyle choices heighten the risk of premature death among men.

In looking at various countries, including the United Kingdom, Thailand, Latvia, Sweden, Japan, Egypt, and Hong Kong, the researchers discovered that the death rate among young men is largely disproportionate to that found among young women. Although the most common causes for male deaths differed from country to country, suicide, accidents, homicide, and chronic disease were all generally more prevalent among men. Of men and women aged 15 through 24, men were three times as likely to die, with accidents and suicide the leading cause of death among men in this group. As the men aged, however, chronic disease became more common. Theoretically, cancer should affect the genders equally, but men contract the disease at significantly higher rates, particularly in their thirties and early forties. This rise in chronic disease among men not yet in their fifties may indicate that many men allow the consequences of poor health to build up over time, accumulating and bringing on serious diseases. Lifestyle choices play a large role in the poor health of men, and such behaviors as not eating a nutritious diet, smoking, exposure to stress, and excessive drinking can have detrimental results.

Men worldwide may pay less attention to their health than women, and they suffer from their unhealthy lifestyle choices. But by recognizing and changing problematic behaviors, individuals can prevent the damage that a poor lifestyle can inflict upon both the mind and the body.