Married Men 25% More Likely to Be Obese

Steadily gaining weight after marriage is a pattern often associated with women, but new research is finding men are by no means immune.

In fact, married men were found 25 percent more likely to become obese compared to men of the same age who did not wed.

According to the study, which was published in the journal Families, Systems and Health, married men were more likely to be overweight than single men, those in a committed relationship or those just dating.

The study’s authors concluded that “being married may be a risk factor for overweight/obesity in young adult men.”

The volunteers for the research were Midwesterners whose average age was 25. These men were married, engaged, dating or single.

They were surveyed about what they typically eat, their exercise routine and their weight gain history.

“Married men were more likely to be

overweight than single men or men dating.”

Of the group, 55 percent were female and 45 percent were male.

More than one-third were single or dating at the time of the study and about a quarter were married. About 40 percent were in committed relationships.

Those with a body mass index, or BMI, greater than 25 were classified as obese.

The eating habits revealed some clear patterns that were interesting. For instance, married women were found “more likely to eat breakfast (more than) five times per week compared with women in other relationship categories.”

This emphasizes the importance of having regular times for meals, something women were found more reliable at than men.

The authors point out a subject’s relationship status was not found to predict other health behaviors, including getting fruit and vegetables in their diet or trying to eat less fast food.

From medicaldaily.com.