Men who have never done this are three times more likely to die of heart disease, research shows. During midlife and beyond, men's leading causes of death include
familiar standbys: heart disease, cancer, unintentional injuries,
stroke, diabetes, respiratory disease, suicide, and Alzheimer's disease.
Not too late to fix.
To lessen your odds of dying from these killers, curb the critical habits that lead to them.
One of these is marital status.
Numerous surveys have shown that married men, especially men in their
50s, 60s, and 70s, are healthier and have lower death rates than those
who never married or who are divorced or widowed. Never-married men are
three times more likely to die of cardiovascular disease, for example.
After 50, divorced men's health deteriorates rapidly compared to married
men's, found a RAND Center for the Study of Aging report.
What's
the magic in the ring? The social connectedness of marriage may lower
stress levels and depression, which lead to chronic illness. (Women tend
to have more social ties outside of marriage.)
Oops: Unmarried
men generally have poorer health habits, too -- they drink more, eat
worse, get less medical care, and engage in more risky behaviors (think
drugs and promiscuous sex). Exception: It's better to be single than in a
strained relationship, probably because of the stress toll, say
researchers in Student BMJ.
Silver lining: It's
never too late. Men who marry after 25 tend to live longer than those
who wed young. And the longer a fellow stays married, the greater the
boost to his well-being.
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