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Working hard to find mate shortens life

BOSTON, Aug. 11 (UPI) -- Finding a mate can be hard work and it may shorten the lives of those who work hard at it, U.S. researchers suggest.

Senior author Nicholas Christakis -- a professor of medicine and medical sociology at Harvard Medical School and professor of sociology at Harvard University -- says the study shows the ratio of men to women affects how hard it is to find a mate and that extra effort can affect longevity.

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The study, published in the journal Demography, finds men who reach sexual maturity where they far outnumber women, live, on average, three months less than men whose competition for a mate isn't as tough.

In other words, the steeper the gender ratio, the sharper the decline in lifespan.

"At first blush, one-quarter of a year may not seem like much, but it is comparable to the effects of, say, taking a daily aspirin, or engaging in moderate exercise," Christakis says in a statement. "A 65-year-old man is typically expected to live another 15.4 years. Removing three months from this block of time is significant."

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