On the fence about marriage? A recent study of Americans showed that married people are less likely to suffer from heart or blood vessel problems. Marriage was best for people under age 50, as they had a 12 percent lower risk of heart-related disease than single people their age.
The study was comprised of 3.5 million Americans. It showed that married people of all ages both men and women, regardless of heart disease risk factors, fared better than single, divorced, and widowed people.
“In the largest look at marriage and heart health,” said Dr. Carlos Alviar, co-researcher and cardiologist behind the study, researchers included divorced and widowed people to give a total look at all heart diseases, including clogged arteries, stroke risks, and circulation problems in legs.
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The results were taken from people, average 64, who gave information on smoking, diabetes, family history, obesity, exercise, and other factors, and researchers had blood pressure and other health measures. Research also found that smoking was higher in divorced people and lowest in widowed people. Obesity was most common in those single and divorced.
Why the better results for married couples versus single people? Scientists don’t have definitive answers but some possible causes. “It might be that if someone is married, they have a spouse who encourages them to take better care of themselves,” said Dr. Jeffrey Berger, a preventive cardiologist at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York.
“We don’t really have a clear explanation” for why marriage may be protective, said Dr. Vera Bittner, a cardiologist at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Married couples “may be more willing to follow up with medical appointments,” and follow doctor’s orders of recommended drugs, diet and exercise if you have a spouse, she said.
Regardless of whether married or single, doctors recommend people to take care of their health and have regular doctor appointments.