A complicated relationship between gender gap and life expectancy in Japan

While the World Economic Forum states “People live longer in more gender-equal countries. Women get the biggest boost in their life expectancy as gender equality increases…,” according to research conducted by the George Institute in 2023, women in Japan tend to outlive men significantly, despite the relatively low status in society.

Japanese women live longer than men

This year Japan was ranked 125th out of 146 countries regarding gender equality, which is the lowest among OECD member countries. However, according to the WHO 2023 data, life expectancy in Japan (84.3 years old) is the highest, and Japanese women live the longest in the world (86.9 years old). Japanese women somehow live longer and healthier than men although women’s status remains low in a patriarchal society (It’s slowly imporoving, but it’s worth noting that particularly the elderly still hold onto patriarchal mindsets).

Kaori Honjo, a professor at Osaka Medical and Pharmaceutical University, sees this outlying result as unique to the Japanese trend, whereas foreign researchers cannot decipher a mystery. Firstly, women have better health behavior than men such as drinking less alcohol and smoking less.

Social connection skills make a difference

Secondly, women tend to have better mental health than men. Women are considered better at making social connections because they have more opportunities to build diverse relationships, such as with their mom friends and neighbors. In contrast, many men are not accustomed to making connections with their communities because their work commitments leave them with little time for this. It can lead to isolation and depression in men who have lost their spouses.

Happiness level and gender inequality

An interesting fact is that Japanese women who have lost a spouse have a lower mortality risk and a higher level of happiness compared to men, whereas foreign research indicates losing a spouse is a health risk for both men and women. It is assumed that this is because women have connections other than a spouse and they are relieved from the burden of housework after their spouse’s death.

On the other hand, another article suggests that the men-dominated Japanese society causes a significant gender gap regarding happiness levels, with women being much happier than men. The author believes that it is because Japanese men are still bound to traditional gender roles such as “men should be the head of the family” and they feel pressure to meet high expectations.

Women’s role in health awareness and hygiene in Japan

Finally, many women are more aware of hygiene and health than men due to their traditional gender roles. Since typical Japanese women often take on the roles of taking care of others, such as raising children and caring for the elderly, they tend to be quicker at spotting health problems.

These are just possible reasons behind the unusual result. However, it seems that some health problems cannot be solved by medical development alone.