Divorced Women Face Heart Disease Risk

University of Texas researchers found that the rate of heart disease in divorced women is nearly 60 percent higher than married women.

The research, which was recently published in the Journal of Marriage and Family, is part of a survey conducted over the course of 10 years and involving more than 10,000 middle-aged people.

Researchers found that over the decade-long period more than 1,030 contracted a cardiovascular disease of some type. The findings specifically showed that “11.6 percent of divorced women had heart disease compared to only 8.7 percent of married women.”

The report also offered no comfort to women who found happiness after their original marriage ended. Approximately 11 percent of women who remarried eventually developed heart disease.

The authors of the study concluded that divorce only served to weaken women's health as they age. According to the findings, “about 11 percent of 51-year-old divorcees and 9.8 percent of remarried women had heart disease compared to 7.3 percent of continually married women”

Experts believe that serious mental and physical problems occur as a result of the emotional stress of divorce together with the added burden of transitioning both financially and socially – factors that greatly contribute to the increased risk of heart disease in divorced women.

Men, however, were largely unaffected by divorce. “Our results reveal that women with a marital loss have a higher risk of disease in late-midlife compared to continuously married women, whereas marital loss is not associated with men's risk.”

Considering divorce? Please contact us today to speak with a qualified divorce attorney who will keep your best interests in mind.

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