Entering ChinaOver the past few decades, many studies have found that men tend to live happier lives after marriage. But new research shows that they’ve also gotten fatter. In fact, they are more than three times more likely to be obese than unmarried men.
Polish scientists will present the study at the European Conference on Obesity (ECO 2025) in Spain in May this year, where they looked at data from 1098 men and 1307 women (median age 50 years) from the WOBASZ II National Health Survey. According to statistics, 35.3% of people are “normal weight”, 38.3% are clinically overweight, and 26.4% are obese.
When looking at whether marital status, health knowledge, depression, and social factors contribute to overweight or obesity, a research team led by Alicja Cicha-Mikołajczyk of the National Heart Research Institute came up with some interesting figures.
Married men have a 62% increased risk of being overweight after marriage, while their wives have a 39% increased risk. While these numbers may not sound significant, after comparing married men and single men through odds ratio (OR) analysis – that is, studying the association between two groups – the scientists found that married men were more than three times more likely to be obese than unmarried men (OR 3.19). However, even when women gain weight after marriage, it is the same as that of unmarried women.
Of course, we already know what causes obesity – such as poor eating habits, low activity, genetics, underlying health problems, etc. Events such as the natural aging process and female menopause also play a role. Here, in particular, the research team looked at the effects of “functional health knowledge, depression, and social support” on weight change.
In this study, there is evidence that living in smaller, more isolated communities, not having a good social network (how often you talk to friends and family and how often you participate in social activities), and poor health literacy are factors that contribute to overweight and obesity. That’s not the whole story, though. Scientists believe that the similarities between married and unmarried women may be the result of social and cultural “norms”.
“Age and marital status have an undeniable influence on overweight or obese life in adulthood, regardless of gender,” the authors write. Conversely, poor health knowledge and at least borderline depression are also associated with obesity in women. From our findings, disseminating health knowledge and promoting health throughout a person’s life cycle can reduce the worrying phenomenon of increasing levels of obesity. “
Of course, the study has a lot of limitations – narrow survey pathways, no assessment of interrelated factors, and the fact that it is based only on Polish studies – but scientists believe it could help medical professionals better target people at higher risk of obesity, such as improving social relationships and improving health literacy.
Overall, 28% of obese participants had cardiovascular disease, more than twice as many as those who weighed in the “normal” range.
The results of the study will be presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Malaga, Spain, May 11-14, 2025.
