Is Marriage Good Medicine for Bypass Patients?

An intriguing new study finds that married people are more than twice as likely as single people to be alive 15 years after coronary bypass surgery.

Researchers followed 225 coronary bypass surgery patients from 1987 to 1990. Of the participants, 61 percent of the married patients and 30 percent of the unmarried patients survived for at least the next 15 years.

By contrast, unmarried women didn't fare as well - only 26 percent were still alive at the end of 15 years, and only 36 percent of unmarried men during the same period. But a whopping 83 percent of happily married women and men were still around, according to the study, published in the journal Health Psychology.

The research had caveats, however: The big differences between married women and unmarried women shrank significantly when the researchers adjusted their statistics so they wouldn't be thrown off by the various ages of the women. And fewer women were in the sample of patients, possibly affecting their results.

Better recovery

Study co-author Harry T. Reis, Ph.D., at the University of Rochester, says that although the research didn't prove that having a spouse improves a person's health, the research provides more evidence that having a long-term mate can improve one's recovery.

"Marriage gives you purpose in life, and feeling like you have a reason to live is an important part of doing the things you need to do to stay alive," says Dr. Reis. "Married people also help each other; remind each other it's time to take their pills. And they probably eat healthier."

Women's health affected

One troubling note, according to the study, is that unhappy marriages -- defined as those in which patients said they weren't very satisfied -- spelled trouble for women. Only about 29 percent of those in unhappy marriages survived, but 60 percent of the men in unhappy marriages did.

Dr. Reis points out that an actual marriage license isn't absolutely necessary to stay healthy. Long-term committed relationships can have the same effect.

Always talk with your health care provider to find out more information.