Study: Men more susceptible to illness

[Guest guest]

Hi Everyone,

I thought maybe you would find this interesting. It tells why more women than men get MS.

Study: Men more susceptible to illness

Source: UPI BALTIMORE (UPI) -- Men are more susceptible to viruses, bacteria and fungi than women, s Hopkins University researchers say. The study of 12,000 rat genes concludes that estrogen accounts for the difference in the ability of males and females to withstand such infections -- a difference that does not exist before puberty, The London Daily Mail reported. The study says women have stronger adaptive immunity systems that make them less susceptible to the common cold. However, women's stronger adaptive immunity systems may make them more susceptible to autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis, lead researcher Lamason said. "The documented higher mortality rates in males worldwide may be due in part to this relatively deficient adaptive immune response," Lamason wrote in the British journal BMC Immunology.

Copyright 2006 by United Press International