Monday, October 14, 2019

Death Rate Much Lower for Married People

Married people have strikingly lower death rate than the never-married, divorced, or widowed, according to a report by the National Center for Health Statistics. Take a look at the number of deaths per 100,000 population in 2017 by marital status...

Age-adjusted death rate by marital status in 2017
   779.6 for the married
1,368.8 for the divorced
1,443.6 for the never married
1,656.9 for the widowed

The age-adjusted death rate of married people was 43 percent lower than the death rate of the divorced in 2017. It was 46 percent lower than the death rate of the never married, and 53 percent lower than the death rate of the widowed.

One factor that leads to the lower death rate for the married is self-selection, with healthier people more likely than the less healthy to be married. Another factor is the benefit of living with someone who has your back, urging you to go to doctor appointments, take your pills, and eat right. A third factor leading to higher death rates for the single, divorced, widowed, is the stress surrounding the single life, marital breakups, and the death of a spouse.

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, Mortality among Adults Aged 25 and over by Marital Status: United States, 2010–2017

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