People in relationships come together. A cliché, but one with some truth. According to a new scientific study, men gain weight once they get married.
To demonstrate the impact of marriage on our BMI, scientists from the Chinese Academy of Social Science examined the BMI of test subjects between the ages of 18 and 45. This showed that the Body Mass Index is indeed influenced by marriage, especially in the male half of the population. The study also refers to the phenomenon as ‘happy fat’.
The researchers concluded not only that men’s BMI generally increases after marriage, but also that an additional 5.2 percent of men become overweight and an additional 2.5 percent are obese. According to the study, men eat more after marriage and exercise less, which explains the change. However, in women there was no noticeable evolution.
“Considering the correlation between obesity and various diseases, family members, especially men, should prioritize physical fitness and health management during their marriage. Public health policy should consider marriage as an impactful window of intervention. The study results suggest that separate post-marital body management plans should be designed for men and women,” the researchers said.
The scientists based their study on data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey, so it is not clear whether the same evolution also occurs elsewhere.
