When it comes to our immune system, it seems women are the stronger sex - Why Women Experience COVID and the Vaccines Differently Than Men.

[cujoe]

For those of you wondering why the more severe Covid infections and deaths occur among men, this fascinating interview from MedPage Today should help you understand why. This passage from it sums up the reasons pretty well:

"...not only do women have the two X chromosomes that allow extra activation to protect against immune function and response, they have the hormones that turn on response to target the bad guy and men have the hormone that turns off the ability to target the bad guy or the virus?"

Here is a link to the entire interview (Be sure to also read the comments in the section at the end - just click on the "comments" box):

medpagetoday.com/podcasts/t...

Stay informed and Stay Well - K9

[NPfisherman]

Interesting that this increased immune responsiveness from being XX chromosome also may explain the increased incidence in women of autoimmune diseases like SLE and MS... Sad to hear about the drop in workforce participation from CoVid also... and have babies as well.... It is tough to be a woman...

Fish

[cujoe in reply to NPfisherman]

I was also surprised at the drastic female predisposition for autoimmune disease, as well as the strange restrictions on clinical trail participation in what I would have considered to be a period of medical enlightenment.

For us PCa patients, there are lots of issues that relate to the influence of sexual hormones on immune response and the possible effects of ADT. I keep seeing discussion arguing for both positive and negative effects related to COVID? What's your read Mr. Science?

BTW, is your "tough to be woman" comment from person experience? Something we don't know about the fisherman?

[NPfisherman in reply to cujoe]

Well K9 Terror,

I believe that ADT does provide some protection against CoVid based on the papers that I have read, although early on I had my doubts. As for my "tough to be a woman" comment, in my field, there is a predominance of women and just my work environment experience may have played a part in my comment. Of course, I have seen domestic abuse cases,and we could talk about lower pay for women, women being forced to raise children as single parents, the double standard of society in men vs women, etc.... AND THEN....to find out that XX gets you the blessing of increased autoimmune disorders...WELL... there you go... I can say that some of the women in my life have had it tough also... so yeah...IT'S TOUGH TO BE A WOMAN !!!... So guys...show your women some love tonight !!!

Fish

[cujoe in reply to NPfisherman]

No doubt, evolution gave the better immune system to the sex that was most key to the continuation of the species. (As it should be.) Tragic that it has taken all this time for women to start to get any equity in the world - and that their superior immune system is making them more susceptible to the modern era's autoimmune disorders.