The good news: men are closing the longevity gap with women. Thanks to heart-bypasses, cholesterol meds, and seat belts, men are finally starting to die more slowly.
In an otherwise interesting report, this odd note among the advice to men who want to live longer:
--Get a wife, a partner or at least a lot of friends. Married men live longer. (Their wives die sooner than single women, but that's a different column.) People with close friends and relatives live longer, too, Butler
[My emphasis]
But if you want a wife in Japan, be prepared to fork out plenty for a pseudo-church wedding - all the rage among young Japanese too busy to find their own partners.
A giant industry is at work getting the record number of unmarried Japanese to the altar. Computer-dating agencies say that they are taking over the role of the traditional nakodo, or match-maker, usually an aunt or busybody neighbour. Haruyuki Fujieda, a senior executive at Zwei, one of the biggest agencies, says research shows that over four-fifths of all singles between 24 and 44 do not choose to be unmarried, but are too busy to have found the right partner.
Meanwhile, the birth rate plummets. Could there be a connection??
(I liked the part about the fake priest.)
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