The Cloisterstudy - Or is there a biological age gap between men and women?

A data-heavy posting, more formating and translation work than anything else:

The starting point and until today the most important research project of the cloister study is the question if male excess mortality (in the industrialized countries currently 5-8 years in life expectancy at birth) is mainly caused by biological factors (genetic or hormonal differences) or non-biological factors (differences in life-style or environmental issues). The fact that non-biological risk factors can be largely ruled out inside the catholic cloistered population allows testing the impact of biological causes on female survival advantages. The works of this study have been awarded with the first prize for researches by young scholars of the German Foundation for World Population (DSW) and the German Association for Demography (DGD) in 1998 and with the Gunther Beyer Award of the European Association of Population Studies (EAPS) in 2003.

Numbers of individuals, deaths, and person-years at risk lived above age 25 of Bavarian nuns and monks during the observation periods

Bavarian Nuns                Bavarian Monks
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Period      lived years      C.D.R.      lived years      C.D.R.
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1955/1985     87.944,99       20,49        37.194,32       18,26
1960/1990     81.518,14       22,98        35.752,86       20,67
1965/1995     73.506,72       26,24        33.592,63       23,37
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C.D.R. = Crude death rate

Life expectancy at age 25 e25 for females and males of the general German population and for Bavarian nuns and monks with prevailing sex differences

German Population                Bavarian Nuns and Monks
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Mortality table  difference      Mortality table  difference
---------------------------------------------------------------
1960/1962              4,55       1946/1976             0,71*
1964/1966              5,03       1950/1980             0,99*
1970/1972              5,49       1955/1985             0,80*
1974/1976              5,73       1960/1990             1,57*
1979/1981              6,06       1965/1995             2,27*
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* Statistical signifcant difference from the German 
population on the 95%-confidence-level

Numbers of individuals, deaths, and person-years at risk lived above age 25 of Bavarian nuns and monks during the observation periods

Bavarian Nuns                                                          Bavarian Monks
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Period        Persons        Deaths     lived years      C.D.R.        Persons        Deaths     lived years      C.D.R.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1955/1985       4.082         1.802       87.944,99       20,49          1.788           679       37.194,32       18,26
1960/1990       3.828         1.873       81.518,14       22,98          1.744           739       35.752,86       20,67
1965/1995       3.543         1.929       73.506,72       26,24          1.702           785       33.592,63       23,37
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C.D.R. = Crude death rate

Life expectancy at age 25 e25 for females and males of the general German population and for Bavarian nuns and monks with prevailing sex differences

German Population                                  Bavarian Nuns and Monks
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Mortality table   Women      Men  difference       Mortality table    Women      Men  difference
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1960/1962         50,33    45,78        4,55       1946/1976          49,12*   48,41*       0,71*
1964/1966         50,89    45,86        5,03       1950/1980          50,05*   49,06*       0,99*
1970/1972         51,14    45,65        5,49       1955/1985          50,95    50,15*       0,80*
1974/1976         51,79    46,06        5,73       1960/1990          51,88    50,31*       1,57*
1979/1981         53,05    46,99        6,06       1965/1995          52,88    50,61*       2,27*
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* Statistical signifcant difference from the German population on the 95%-confidence-level

Life expectancy at age 25 for German females and males and for Bav. nuns and monks represented at the mid calendar year of the observation periods

Frauen = Women | Männer = Men | Nonnen = Nuns | Mönche = Monks

In conclusion, if there is a biological difference, the difference is very small (about 2 years). To answer the question why men die earlier, we have to look at many different factors and I will eventually do so in another post. Nevertheless male health does not have the same focus female health has and without a doubt the difference in mortality rates is another reason we should have a closer look at men's health.