By Anne Hurley
Marriage opens the door to all kinds of good stuff -- wedding presents, tax breaks, shared health insurance. And, apparently, better health, too. But there is a catch. Just being part of a couple doesn’t guarantee good health and a long life -- you actually have to be part of a happy couple in order to reap those benefits.
Researchers at Brigham Young university reported in a new study by that happy marriages create healthy people. They used data from a nationwide sampling of 1,681 married people, tracking them over the course of two decades. And while plenty of previous studies have hinted at such a connection, this is the first to follow so many people over such a length of time. Researchers looked at the subjects’ physical health and also analyzed their responses to regular surveys about their marital quality (one asked questions about overall happiness and life satisfaction; the other asked specifics about marital problems and arguments).
What they found is that the couples who fought the most, also had the most health problems, while those who lived in more harmonious marriages enjoyed better health. The two of the most common areas of conflict? Money and mothers-in-law.
There are many possible explanations for why the couples with less conflict tend to fare better on the health front. The researchers theorize that happy couples support each other’s efforts to stay healthy (encouraging regular doctor check ups and healthy eating, while discouraging smoking and other bad habits). Less conflict also means less stress -- a positive cycle that then leads to better sleep, a better diet, less risk for diabetes and heart disease, etc.
“When spouses have a bad day, in a happy marriage, they’re more likely to support each other and empathize with each other,” said Brigham Young University family life researcher Rick Miller. “That support reduces stress and helps buffer against a decline in health.”
So apparently, instead of that whole “for better or worse, in sickness and in health” stuff you said at the wedding, you actually want to go with something like, “arguing about cash and your in-laws will make you sick, getting along will keep you healthy.”
