Men should stay at home to minimise risk. Can we have this conversation?

[DJLippy]

The stats are showing that men are far more likely to die from Corona than women. It's a 70/30 split according to some estimates.

However when I go out on my daily bike ride I notice far more men in the streets than women. They are very vulnerable to Covid I am concerned. Should we encourage men who are not key workers to stay at home? Would society be able to function?

Many of the key services are staffed by women. The NHS workforce is 74% female and nurses and health care assistant workforces (who provide the most intimate care) are 90% female. Even doctors (who we often imagine as male) are 45% female.

The key workers seem to be split by sex quite a lot. For example - nurses and teachers overwhelmingly female. Drivers, engineers, road crews ect overwhelmingly male. Obviously they are allowed to travel freely. They are doing vital work.

Is there a case to be made (to minimise risk) that men should stay in the house?

Aside from the genetic aspects which make men vulnerable to Covid, stats show that men (as a class) all have much lower personal hygiene than women. Women obey the hand washing rules better than men. Therefore women (as a class) are less likely to spread disease.

Meanwhile police have to concentrate their resources on Covid related issues. Considering that men commit 90% of violent crime maybe it's best we introduce a law which keeps the sex with the greatest propensity for criminality in the house.

I cant help but feel like if the stats were the other way around women would be living under house arrest. Or at least face a lot of social pressure to do so...

Can we have a conversation about this?

More things that no one ever said

I really want random testing, or better yet testing for entire populations, with a test which shows not only the presence of the disease itself but also antibodies which show that the tested individual has had the disease in the past, either so mildly that they didn't know it or asymptomatically altogether.

That is literally the only way in which it will be possible to establish what sectors of the public are more or less prone to catching covid19. As far as I know, only one town in Germany has so far attempted to do this, and they discovered that about 15% of those they randomly tested had either got it or had had it in the past -- But I don't think they have split their results by age and sex.

At the moment all we know is that more men than women, as a percentage of the population, seem to get it seriously enough to be admitted to hospital, need a ventilator or to die of it.

That simply is not enough data to make any decisions on.

or should they be allowed (or even forced) to go outside for exercise if it contributes to them losing weight?

It wont contribute to me losing weight but im up for it

I haven’t been for a walk for ages

That simply is not enough data to make any decisions on.

Precisely, unless you are the op

But I don't think they have split their results by age and sex

They dont seem to split by sex even when it could be very helpful

Or age to be fair

Bold fail 😡

More things that no one ever said

Your entire premise is based upon 'keeping at risk people safe'.

As far as I am aware the lockdown conditions are about "flattening the curve" and insuring that we keep infections at a steady rate so they dont overwhelm the NHS. That's the entire point.

We know that men when they get Ill are much more likely to need an ICU bed - and put pressure on the NHS.

Considering this and the aforementioned reasons am I totally mad? Is it soooooo unreasonable? We are taking extreme measures on an untested strategy which is likely to trash the economy.

If men would be good and stay in house then we could all get out of this much quicker. If they weren't so selfish...I'm being facetious btw but this is exactly the arguments being made to insist that we should all remain at home. We are living in a totally surreal world why not let shot get weirder?

really want random testing, or better yet testing for entire populations, with a test which shows not only the presence of the disease itself but also antibodies

Me too but I understand that any government responsible for a sizeable population would be crucified if they used the limited number of test kits on random asymptomatic individuals.

Grumpy-

“ predisposition to high blood pressure, heart disease, and diabetes at a much younger age than white people.”

Do you know the reasons for this? Genetics?

DJLippy

It's a great idea. We must keep all at risk people at home - so that's over 70s, people with certain illnesses plus all men and 21 - 40 year olds ( as per op and a pp). Good thinking. No issues with any of that.

Great to see on FWR a poster making an argument for making some women work harder and face higher risk of infection.

We'd need cheaper testing kits and lots of them to make mass testing feasible (I agree that it would be an excellent idea).

What kittens and asking said

Men die more because they have a Y chromosome. Women die less because they have 2 X chromosomes and that’s the chromosome with the immune system genes.
R4’s More Or Less did an excellent investigation into it. Even in populations with similar risk-taking statistics (drinking, smoking etc) and with more women catching the disease, men are disproportionately likely to die from it.

Flatten the curve

www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p088lhjq

Thanks for that source Anne popping it on now

So that's more support for your argument to shield men. I think it's great. Let's do it.

When will you arrange for a woman to do my shopping op?

Yes I’d heard that anne

Fascinating what a difference sex makes

You seem to spend quite a lot of time at the shops Hooves what with all your agitated posts about incorrect shopping/queuing habits, surely you dont need my help?

I haven’t been for a walk for ages

Are you in a vulnerable group? Walking is allowed. I'm sorry to hear you say this.

I'm sorry to hear you say this

You are lovely dido

No its because we have been self isolating cos dd was very ill with god knows what

We leave near a beach so i was a bit paranoid about going out and accidentally coughing on someone

Off for a nice Big walk (in the opposite direction to the beach) on sunday though

We have been playing games in the garden with dd (18) and ds2 (16) and doing exercise videos...its been awesome especially as ds2 will NOT go for a walk with us

Is dd feeling better now?

You seem to spend quite a lot of time at the shops Hooves

Haven't been to the shops in weeks seeing as I'm shielded. I work in a supermarket so getting regular updates from friends who are still at work.

I'm having to rely on my husband, who is in an at risk group, to shop for us and still go out to work as a key worker risking infection. But no carry on hypothesising about how great the world would be without men.

Funny how you get so tetchy when it's pointed out how utterly ridiculous your idea is

Maybe the words should be "completely unworkable" rather than "utterly ridiculous"?

It's an interesting idea to bat about and see what flaws there are in it.

Yes thank you kittens

Ive never seen any of my 3 so ill before, never been frightened to go to sleep

The odds are good it wasnt covid 19...but she was doing a bloody good impression of someone with covid 19

She wanted me to read a bedtime story and her dad to act it in real time...shes 18!