How divorce affects health: more dangerous for men

Scientists have found that divorce negatively affects men's health and poses a serious threat to them. Divorce provokes the risk of heart attack, senile dementia, and early death in the "stronger sex".

These are the results of a study conducted by scientists from the University of Copenhagen. It involved 4,800 people aged 48 to 62. The researchers were interested in the long-term impact of divorce on health.

As it turned out, divorce has a stronger effect on men's health. The researchers called seven years after the divorce the critical period. If men remain single beyond this period, the risk of disease increases.

The study showed that the level of inflammation in the body of divorced men increases. The highest levels of inflammatory markers were observed in the "stronger sex" with higher education, who spent 2-6 and more than 7 years alone. Their level of inflammation increased by 17% compared to their peers in stable relationships.

This is a natural biological response to stress, which leads to hardening of the arteries, heart attack or stroke, tumor development, dementia, and even premature death.

However, these patterns were true only for men: no such correlations were found in women. Scientists believe that this is due to different reactions to divorce.

For example, men tend to externalize their behavior after a divorce, i.e., to blame everything on the outside world - on circumstances, their former partner, etc. Because of this, they may drink "out of grief" and lead a less healthy lifestyle, which carries health risks.

Women, on the other hand, usually blame themselves, and this manifests itself in depressive symptoms. And depression and alcoholism have different effects on the level of inflammation in the body.

In addition, according to scientists, middle-aged women, unlike their male counterparts, have many more friends who offer emotional support. This is what prevents stress from affecting the health of the fair sex.

The study showed that men are more dependent on women than vice versa, and divorce is more dangerous for them.

As OBOZREVATEL previously reported, a study conducted by the British Marriage Foundation in cooperation with Savanta ComRes showed which couples most often get divorced.

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