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Women are the Hardier Sex...
... When it comes to tolerating pain, new research says
By Colette Bouchez
HealthDayNews Reporter
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SUNDAY, May 18 (HealthDayNews) -- She gets a tooth pulled, then drives herself home, makes dinner for four, does the laundry and helps the kids with their homework.
He gets a tooth pulled and his universe slams to a halt, as he waits for the pain to go away.
Caricatures? Sure. But the debate over who can really stand more pain has been one of the more interesting battles of the sexes, spanning generations.
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Now, however, new research is bringing that battle into a whole new arena, with strong evidence that the traditionally "weaker" sex may be hardier after all.
"I think men have always secretly suspected that in order to go through childbirth a woman has to be pretty tough. Now we have some new science to back up the idea that women may be better able to cope with pain than men -- at least during certain periods of their life," says Dr. James N. Dillard, author of the The Chronic Pain Solution and an assistant clinical professor at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City.
The secret weapon? Estrogen. Produced by the ovaries in peak amounts during the reproductive years, and in lesser amounts later in life, the hormone's influence may extend far beyond a woman's reproductive tract. Its powers may reach straight to the pain centers of the brain.
"Although pain is influenced by many factors, it's clear that estrogen plays an important role in the individual response," says Dr. Jon-Kar Zubieta, a neuroscientist at the University of Michigan who has published several studies investigating links between sex hormones and pain.
One way estrogen helps women to cope with pain, he says, is by increasing the availability of endorphins -- brain chemicals that help dampen the pain response.
When estrogen levels are high, there's an increased number of areas in the brain where endorphins can "park." The more "parking places" available, Zubieta says, the more endorphins there are on call, waiting to flood the body with "feel good" chemicals capable of overriding pain signals.
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Copyright © 2003 ScoutNews, LLC. All rights reserved.
Last updated 5/18/2003
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SOURCES: James N. Dillard, M.D., D.C., C.Ac., assistant clinical professor, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, clinical adviser, Columbia's Rosenthal Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, and director, Complementary Medicine Services, University Pain Center, New York City; Jon-Kar Zubieta, M.D., Ph.D., lead researcher, neuroscientist and director, Psychiatry Division, University of Michigan Depression Center, Ann Arbor
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