(Newser)
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Women have their hardworking cells to thank for the fact that they tend to live longer than men, argues a scientist. Experts believe aging is caused by tiny problems in the body, and we die when our bodies stop repairing these issues, the Daily Mail reports. Women, suggests the UK scientist, are genetically hardwired to maintain their cells longer, while men are more biologically “disposable.”
“Under the pressure of natural selection to make the best use of scarce energy supplies, our species gave higher priority to growing and reproducing than to living forever,” researcher Tom Kirkwood writes in Scientific American. Where reproducing is concerned, it’s the woman’s body that matters most, for carrying and nursing the baby—“the man’s reproductive role is less directly dependent on his continued good health."
