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CHICAGO: Baby boys are more likely to die than baby girls and
medical advances have actually increased the gender gap, a study
released Monday found.
An analysis of infant mortality in 15 developed
countries found that baby boys are 24 percent more likely to die
than baby girls. This is down from a peak of 31 percent in 1970, but
double the rate in the days before the development of vaccines and
public health measures like improved sanitation dramatically
improved infant mortality rates.
“During the great historical improvements in
infant mortality, the rising male disadvantage in infancy revealed a
level of unexpected male vulnerability,” the study published in
the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences concluded.
“As infant mortality falls to very low levels,
infant deaths become increasingly concentrated among those who are
born with some weakness.”
The male disadvantage begins in utero.
Girls have a stronger immune system while boys
are 60 percent more likely to be born prematurely and to suffer from
respiratory problems, among others. Boys are also more likely to
cause risky or difficult labor because of their larger body and head
size.
When poor sanitation and nutrition weakened all
babies and mothers, the male disadvantage was less noticeable: from
1751 until 1870 the gender mortality gap was about 10 to 15 percent.
-- AFP
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