Women report suffering more pain than men across every bodily site measured, according to a major new global study published in Nature Medicine. The research, which analyzed data from more than 6 million people in 118 countries, confirms a persistent gender pain gap that affects individuals from childhood through old age.
Researchers described this effort as one of the largest harmonization projects in pain epidemiology. The dataset covered participants aged five to over 100 years, tracking self-reported pain from 1990 to 2025. The findings highlight that women experience higher levels of pain in 11 specific areas, including the head, face, neck, shoulders, feet, ankles, hands, wrists, elbows, chest, back, stomach, hips, and knees.
Pain Peaks Before Age 55
The study identified a distinct trajectory for pain intensity across the human lifespan. For both men and women, the steepest rise in pain occurred before individuals turned 55. High-intensity pain peaked around age 50, while generalized pain reached its highest point near age 70.
Back, hip, and knee pain showed a progressive increase throughout life, consistent with cumulative mechanical and degenerative load at weight-bearing sites. In contrast, upper body pain, including neck, shoulder, and elbow discomfort, tended to peak around midlife and then decline. Headache, facial, and abdominal pain also peaked earlier in life before decreasing.
Approximately 40% of participants reported back pain, making it the most common complaint. Facial pain was the rarest, reported by only 2% of respondents. The authors noted that a substantial share of the lifetime pain burden develops during working-age adulthood, suggesting that prevention and care strategies need to target this specific demographic window.
Disparities in Healthcare and Treatment
These findings come amid ongoing concerns about the gender pain gap, a phenomenon where women are less likely to receive adequate pain relief. Professor Andrew Horne, director of the Centre for Reproductive Health at the University of Edinburgh, called the research a landmark study. He emphasized that the evidence shows the gender pain gap is real, consistent, and global.
Horne pointed out that women’s pain is often dismissed, underresearched, and undertreated. He argued that closing this gap requires taking women’s pain seriously in clinical settings, routinely analyzing data by sex, and funding research into the biological and social causes of pain. Professor Rebeccah Slater of the University of Oxford echoed these concerns, noting the troubling paradox that women experience more pain yet face higher rates of late diagnosis and undertreatment.
The study also revealed significant regional variations in pain prevalence. Individuals in the lowest Human Development Index regions had substantially higher late-life prevalence of bodily pain. These areas showed almost twice the rates of low back pain in older age compared to more developed regions.
Researchers attributed 18.3% of the global pain burden to smoking, obesity, and low household incomes. This figure varied by region, ranging from 12.6% in sub-Saharan Africa to 27.1% in eastern Europe. In Oceania, 6.6% of pain was attributable to smoking, while 11.2% was linked to obesity. North America saw 14.6% of pain attributable to obesity, compared to 2.7% in central and southern Asia.
The authors acknowledged limitations in the research, including different methods of measuring pain and uneven coverage across age groups and regions. They also noted that the study described patterns for specific age groups rather than following the same individuals over time. Despite these constraints, the overall patterns remained clear, providing a foundation for more equitable monitoring and prevention efforts worldwide.
Source: The Guardian
