Summary:
Both women and men are susceptible to diseases, but due to different body functionality and a different genetic makeup, both the genders are prone to a different set of diseases. And this different bodily function and make up leads to different diseases.
Here are the diseases or health conditions that affect women more than men.
Lupus
This chronic autoimmune disease can damage any part of the body like skin, joints, and organs with a range of symptoms. Anyone can be affected with lupus but common in women ? 90 percent of the victims are women - with it being more common in African American, Hispanic, Asian, and Native American descent than in Caucasian women.
Symptoms include pain or swelling in joints, muscle pain, fever with no known cause, a butterfly rash on the face and sensitivity to the sun. The cause of lupus is not known but the research suggests that it can be genetic. It may take months or years for a doctor to diagnose the disease.
Multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis or MS is a disease that affects the central nervous system. More than 2.1 million people worldwide are diagnosed with and it is two to three times more common in women. Three out of every four people diagnosed with MS are women. Most MS symptoms are noticeable between age 20 and 40 and range from muscle numbness to paralysis and vision loss. Currently, it has no cure.
Celiac disease
This is a genetic autoimmune disorder. In it when a person consumes gluten it damages the small intestine. If one consumes foods containing gluten, the body starts an immune response attacking the small intestine damaging the the lining the small intestine that promote nutrient absorption. When the lining is damaged, nutrients cannot be absorbed properly in the body and hence patients are advised to have gluten free diet.
Irritable bowel syndrome
This is a very common disorder affecting up to 3.5 million people with up to 65 percent of the individuals being women. The cause is unknown. It affects the large intestine which has symptoms of cramping, pain, bloating, gas, diarrhoea, and constipation consistently for at least three months. It tends to be first noticed in the late teens or early twenties with symptoms coming and going over a person’s life. For women, the symptoms worsen right before the menstrual cycle.
Well, prevention is better than cure, so look out for symptoms and go see a doctor.