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Singles Face Earlier Death

Single men have particularly high risk

By Neal Colgrass,  Newser Staff

Posted Aug 21, 2011 7:00 PM CDT

(Newser) – Woody Allen may have called marriage the "death of hope," but staying single can literally be fatal. A new study shows that people who don't tie the knot are likely to die earlier, and have a higher risk of dying across a lifetime, than those who are married. Men are particularly vulnerable, with a 32% higher risk, compared to 23% for single women, the International Business Times reports. Lack of a support network, health care, government assistance, and reduced wages were cited as possible reasons for early demise.

In hard numbers, single men may die eight to 17 years earlier than married ones, compared to seven to 15 years earlier for single women. But the risk of earlier death drops dramatically as people get older, and widowed or divorced people were not counted. Still, the research shows "just how poorly the singles do," says one professor at the University of Louisville, Kentucky, where the report was synthesized from 90 previous studies.

Single people are more likely to die earlier than married ones, a new study says.
Single people are more likely to die earlier than married ones, a new study says.   (Shutterstock)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 24 comments
Fatquah
Aug 22, 2011 10:38 AM CDT
But happier lives.
Jingo
Aug 22, 2011 9:53 AM CDT
Newser left out that divorced and widowed people were not considered "single".  They also ignored the most important findings: "However, for those people, who survive a single youth, risk of death dramatically decreased during their later stage of life. The risk of death for 30 to 39-year-old singles was 128 per cent higher than married people of the same age. On the other hand, 70-year-old singles had only 16 percent higher risk of death." In other words, it is a lot easier to live a risky life-style when one does not have a lot of other obligations.
CoreyMondello
Aug 22, 2011 8:24 AM CDT
Actually, health is what kills people, not being single. In fact, people who are married for a long time then loose their partner, are more apt to die quicker than those that have been single, because the married person gets depressed, feels lost, stops taking care of themselves and dies, on the other hand, the single person knows how to spend time alone, not lonley, but in "positive solitude" where the dependence on someone else for all you emotional needs is not needed to keep you alive. I figure some Christian wacko group paid for this study, which means my and your tax dollars paid for more religious lies, trying to sell their religious crap.

 
marriage • health research • health study

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