Civitas Review Online

Our very own UNC-Chapel Hill was highlighted in the NYT over the weekend discussing how the college gender gap affects more than just academia. The article, “The New Math on Campus,” looked into the social ramifications of a non-traditional male/female ratio, specifically how it effects college dating and relationships.

“University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, with a student body that is nearly 60 percent female, is just one of many large universities that at times feel eerily like women’s colleges.

Needless to say, this puts guys in a position to play the field, and tends to mean that even the ones willing to make a commitment come with storied romantic histories.”

The article sheds light on the overlooked situation most college men and women regularly face: there are more women than men in the classroom, the graduating class and now, the social scene.

According to a recent report by the American Council on Education, women have represented about 57 percent of enrollment in colleges since 2000. The increase of women on campuses is significant to note as women only began attending college in the late 19th Century. But today, women outnumber men and such a population change is sure to bring social ramifications. While understanding the full effect, if any, the lop-sided male/female ratio is having on the dating culture is far from conclusive. What we do know is women on gender-imbalanced campuses are sacrificing values for an encounter with the disappearing male- and these consequences should not be overlooked.

What happens when health care officials ignore biological differences between men and women? We have talked about this before, here and here. Now, a recent op-ed by Sarba Klein and Phyllis Greenberger in the NY Times argues that the biological differences between men and women should result in different doses of the H1N1 vaccine.

Their argument is based on the fact that men and women differ in their responses to several viral vaccines. The op-ed uses research found at the Archives of Internal Medicine to show that women’s bodies routinely generate a stronger antibody response than men’s do. This fact should result in different doses for the H1N1 vaccine, yet public health authorities insist that the doses remain equal despite women being overdosed.

The op-ed concludes saying:

“Only a handful of countries have plants to manufacture influenza vaccine, and the world’s wealthiest countries have locked up most of what these plants can produce with signed purchasing contracts.

We could make much more — and potentially save millions of lives — if we stopped giving women larger doses than they need.”

Durham County officials cancelled a vaccination clinic for this afternoon because the clinic is expected to run out of  doses by morning’s end. When will health officials wake up and notice that there is a biological difference between men and women? Recognizing these differences, in this case, could actually save lives.