According to a 2021 study published in the journal Brain, Behavior, and Immunity — Health, those in satisfying partnerships had a higher resting heart rate variability (HRV) than those in poor marriages. HRV is a measure used to identify cardiac flexibility. People with higher HRV are thought to have greater cardiovascular endurance and also handle stress better.
According to Veronica Lamarche, a professor of social psychology from the University of Essex, a poor marriage rife with relational conflict can lead to an increase in stress hormones, inflammation, fluctuations in appetite, and disruption in immune system health (per The Guardian). “It isn’t the case that a single fight in a relationship will irreparably harm your health, but frequent fighting over many years will take a toll,” explained the expert.
A 2022 study published in Current Cardiology Reports found that the quality of your intimate relationships has an unexpected bearing on how well or how badly you do when it comes to coronary heart disease. Relational strain and disruption were associated with higher risk. Per a 2023 study in The Journal of the American Heart Association, the recovery outcome of patients aged between 18 and 55 with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) was bad when stressful marriages were part of the picture. Now that you know that the complications of an unhappy marriage are among the surprising ways your partner can affect your health, what can you do to have a better relationship?