1. Men’s and Women’s Brains – Are they really different??
The brain is the most complex yet amazing organ in human body. It performs number of functions
at time right from controlling heart beats, blood pressure, body temperature to maintaining
coordination between our physical movement and much more!! Various studies have found that,
different factors like hormones and social norms can cause differences between the genders.
In the past, differences between men and women had
been put down to may things including upbringing and
social norms. The difference in physiology could have
a much stronger effect on their behavior and could
explain some of those different characteristics that
we actually struggle to understand. Male and female
brains are radically different in anatomy, hormones
and physiology. These differences cause fundamentally different ways of thinking, feeling and
behaving. Larry Cahill, PhD., an associate professor in the Department of Neurobiology and
Behavior at the University of California, Irvine, explains that – “These variations occur
throughout the brain, in region involved in language, memory, emotion, vision, hearing and
navigation”.
1
Typically, men’s brains are 11-12% bigger than women’s brains and have 4 % more cells. But this
size difference has nothing to do with intelligence. Men have approximately 6.5 times more gray
matter than women, whereas women have about 10 times more white matter than men; also

2. women’s brains neurons are more densely packed especially on cortex of the brain which is a
center for language and communication control.
Researchers from Harvard have found that certain parts of the brain are differently sized in males
and females – parts of frontal lobe that is responsible for problem solving & decision making and
limbic cortex – responsible for regulating emotions were found to be larger in women where as
the parietal cortex which is involved in space perception and amygdale that regales sexual and
social behavior were larger in men.2
The brain has two hemispheres – left and right hemisphere, each being responsible for a different
set of functions in the adult human body. The left hemisphere controls the aspects those needed
in problem solving and in analysis; where as right hemisphere controls visual, emotional and
feeling aspects. A Woman tends to communicate
more effectively than men and utilizes non –
verbal cues such as tone, emotion whereas men
tend to be more tasks oriented and less talkative.
Men tend to process better in left hemisphere
while women tend to process equally well
between the two hemispheres. The activity across
both hemispheres of the brain may result in the
strong language skills typically displayed by females. As a result, women often have better
communication skills and emotional intelligence than men. In one study, it was observed that
when men listen, only the left hemisphere of their gets activated, where as in case of women
both hemispheres gets activated.3,4
Women’s brains have been found to have deeper limbic system, the area of the brain associated
with emotions and emotional responses to situations. This probably explains why more women
serve as caregiver for children than men and also, why it is that women are more prone to
depression , especially during times of hormonal shifts such as after child birth or during woman’s
menstrual cycle. Studies have shown that women to be more adaptive than men at encoding
facial differences and determining changing vocal intonations. Ruben Gur, PhD, a neurologist at
the University of Pennsylvania says – “Women are faster and more accurate at identifying
emotions”.
Inferior parietal lobule (IPL) of the brain that control a person’s ability to perform mental
arithmetic is found to be significantly larger in men on left side than in women, explaining why
it is that a man has a naturally better ability in mathematical tasks then women.

3. Response to stress is also found to be quite different in males and females. Men tend to have a
fight or flight response to stress situations while women seem to approach with attend and
befriend strategy. This is mainly because; the hormone oxytocin is released during stress in
everyone. However, estrogen tends to enhance oxytocin resulting in calming and nurturing
feelings whereas testosterone, produced in men in high levels during stress, reduces the effects
of oxytocin. Interestingly the two genders also perceive pain differently. In studies, it was found
that women require more morphine than men to achieve same degree of pain relief with greater
intensity of pain as compare to men.5
Perhaps the way men and women brains are wired differently, there are some disorders that men
and women are susceptible to in different ways. Men are found to be more susceptible to have
dyslexia or other language problems; whereas women are more susceptible to depression and
anxiety. (Society for women health research). 6, 1
As researchers continue to explain how sex influences brain function and with such pronounced
differences between the two genders, it seems to be logical that the brains of men and women
are different!!
Sources:
1. Larry Cahill, Sex-linked Brain Differences--Scientific American, May 2008
http://healthfully.org/medicalscience/id8.html
2. Hoag, Hannah. "Sex on the brain." New Scientist. July 19, 2008
3. Kolata, Gina. "Men and Women Use Brain Differently, Study Discovers." New York Times.
Feb 16, 1995.
4. John Gray, The Male vs. the Female Brain, April 27, 2011
5. Cepeda MS, Carr DB, Women experience more pain and require more morphine than men to
achieve a similar degree of analgesia, Anesthesia and Analgesia [2003, 97(5):1464-1468
6. Crenson, Matt. "Remarks by Harvard President Supported by Some Experts." Associated
Press. Feb. 28, 2005.
(http://www.livescience.com/strangenews/ap_050228_summers.html)
1 Larry Cahill, Sex-linked Brain Differences--Scientific American, cited on May 2008. Available
from: http://healthfully.org/medicalscience/id8.html
2 Hoag, Hannah. "Sex on the brain." New Scientist. Cited on July 19, 2008.

4. 3 Kolata, Gina. "Men and Women Use Brain Differently, Study Discovers." New York Times. Feb
16, 1995.
4 John Gray, The Male vs. the Female Brain, April 27, 2011
5 Cepeda MS, Carr DB, Women experience more pain and require more morphine than men to
achieve a similar degree of analgesia, Anesthesia and Analgesia [2003, 97(5):1464-1468
6 Crenson, Matt. "Remarks by Harvard President Supported by Some Experts." Associated Press.
Feb. 28, 2005. Available from:
http://www.livescience.com/strangenews/ap_050228_summers.html