Long COVID Is Tiring and It Hurts Women More

Although we had seen that women are more resistant to a Covid infection as compared to men, if a recent study is to be believed, it has been found that women are twice more likely to suffer from long COVID symptoms compared to their male counterparts.

Who Experienced Longer COVID Symptoms?

The study conducted by a genetic testing company examined 100,000 people who had a COVID infection through a self-reported survey. Among the study subjects, almost a quarter stated that they experienced long COVID symptoms like breathing issues, fatigue, and brain fog for up to 12 weeks.

Almost half of the women who had long COVID manifested symptoms for six months or more, which meant low productivity, missed workdays, and difficulty managing everyday tasks.

It was also found that individuals with a history of autoimmune diseases or depression have an increased chance of experiencing long COVID symptoms.

Hormones to be Blamed for Long COVID

The reason why women are more severely affected is hormones. scientists know there are similar differences for other kinds of conditions. For example, women are much more likely than men to develop autoimmune conditions such as lupus or multiple sclerosis.

Researchers explained that the reason for it is that women have two copies of the X chromosome which consist of a large number of immune-related genes. Therefore, immune responses are higher in women. The study also propounded that a quarter of women going through long COVID experienced disruption in their menstrual cycle.



Source-Medindia