Lao Liu is 56 years old this year and usually has the habit of exercising, so he looks much younger than his peers. He is also very concerned about his image, and the first thing he does when he gets up every morning is to clean up himself, and one of the essential parts is to shave.
He usually likes to say that my beard grows so fast, which means that the metabolism is good, it must be a sign of good health, and a long life is just around the corner.
The neighbor Lao Wang didn't believe his words at all, thinking that he was alarmist, but the beard grew faster, how could it have anything to do with lifespan.
1. The more often a man shaves, the longer he lives?
Beard is a common name for beard, which refers to the hair that grows on the upper lip, chin, cheeks, neck, and cheeks of men, and is a secondary sexual characteristic of men.
When a man is in puberty, the level of androgens in the body rises dramatically, especially testosterone. Testosterone promotes the development of the reproductive system and also acts on the growth of body hair, including beards. Testosterone is converted to dihydrotestosterone to stimulate facial hair follicles and allow beard growth.
The speed of beard growth is mainly related to genetics, hormone levels and other factors, such as the father's beard growth rate is faster, then the next generation is affected by genes, and the beard growth rate will be faster; Men with high levels of androgen secretion will also have a faster rate of beard growth.
The online saying that the more often a man shaves, the longer he lives is mainly derived from a previous study in United Kingdom.
Researchers from the University of Bristol conducted a 20-year follow-up study of 2,438 middle-aged men to analyze the relationship between shaving and health. It was found that 45 per cent of men who did not shave daily died, and only 31 per cent of men who shaved at least once a day. As a result, many people believe that men who shave regularly live longer.
In fact, there is no clear correlation between the two, and the researchers found that most of the men who are unable to shave every day are single blue-collar workers, who have a lot of life and work pressure, and have no time to clean up after themselves. Coupled with the fact that such men generally have bad habits such as smoking and alcoholism, these will lead to an increased risk of disease and a decrease in life expectancy.
Men who shave every day generally have better living habits and economic strength, and their natural life expectancy will be longer.
2. The 4 behaviors of men, or quietly "steal" your lifespan
With the rapid development of the economy and the improvement of medical and health care, people's average life expectancy has become longer and longer, and it is more and more common for people to live to the age of seventy or eighty, but many data show a strange phenomenon, that is, women generally live a few years longer than men.
According to a study published in The Lancet Public Health, life expectancy in mainland China may increase to 81.3 years in 2035, with the average age of women being 85.1 years and men being 78.1 years. Similarly, WHO data shows that in 2021, life expectancy at birth was 73.8 years for women and 68.4 years for men.
Of course, there is an innate advantage that women live longer than men, but the influence of acquired behavioral factors is also very important. In particular, men who have the following 4 behaviors may be more susceptible if you have to change them as soon as possible.
1. Like to smoke
Data shows that about 30% of men in mainland China smoke, and only about 3% of women smoke. There are at least 69 carcinogens in the smoke produced when tobacco is burned, and long-term smoking increases the risk of many cancers such as lung cancer, oral cancer, esophageal cancer and stomach cancer.
2. Love to drink
Men are the main consumers of alcohol, a study in the Chinese Journal of Epidemiology pointed out that the drinking rate of men aged 30~59 > 60%, of which the drinking rate of men in the age group of 40~49 years old has reached 63.7%, while the amount of alcohol consumed by women of all ages is only 14.4%. It is important to know that alcohol is harmful to health, and even small amounts of alcohol can be a threat to health.
3. Lack of exercise
The data shows that about 16% of men in the mainland are inactive and about 12.2% of women are inactive. Long-term lack of exercise is more likely to lead to obesity, and many middle-aged men have a big belly, which will also greatly affect health.
4. Too much pressure
A survey found that about 7 out of 10 men are burdened with the burden of providing for their families. Long-term exposure to this high-pressure state will have a large impact on the internal organs, and even cause depression.
3. Most men with short life expectancy have three common characteristics
More and more studies have found that the length of life expectancy can actually be observed through some external characteristics, especially men with these three characteristics, the life expectancy may be shorter.
1. Large waist circumference and thick neck
A study involving 410,000 people published in the Chinese Journal of Epidemiology pointed out that people with larger waist circumference and thicker necks may have a shorter lifespan, and the probability of coronary heart disease, acute coronary heart disease events and coronary heart disease death in such people will be significantly increased.
Men should have a waist circumference of < 85cm and a neck circumference of < 38cm.
2. Fast heartbeat and fast eating
People with fast heartbeats are prone to fatigue due to the inability of their hearts to get enough rest after each heartbeat, which increases the risk of heart disease.
The normal heartbeat range should be maintained at 60~100 beats/minute. When people eat, the working state of the heart will change, the heartbeat will increase by 8~10%, the amount of blood ejaculated by the heart will also increase, and the whole process will last for 30~120 minutes.
For people with underlying heart diseases, eating too quickly is easy to cause discomfort such as palpitation, and even induce angina.
3. Love to get angry and have a bad mood
Long-term exposure to bad emotions such as anger, anger, and frustration will lead to an increase in the secretion of stress hormones, allowing inflammatory white blood cells in the blood to migrate to the aorta, which can easily lead to the rupture of hardened plaques in the arteries. Bad mood can also affect stomach health and increase the risk of stomach diseases.
There is no obvious relationship between the speed of beard growth and longevity, so there is no need to dwell too much on this. It should be reminded that if the growth rate of the beard was slow and suddenly became faster recently, it is likely to be caused by disease factors, and it is recommended to seek medical attention in time for relevant examinations.
Resources:
[1] "The More Hair a Man Loses, the More Hair Grows Elsewhere?" 》. The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University 2024-09-09
[2] Why do women generally live longer than men? 5 reasons are key and worth learning! 》. Health Times 08.03.2024
[3] "People with short lifespans generally have these 10 characteristics! The first one is especially noteworthy! 》. Popular Science China 2023-03-01
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