Is a happy marriage a double-edged sword for biological aging? Preliminary evidence for the moderating role of couples' health behaviors.

Stephanie J Wilson, Annelise A Madison, M Rosie Shrout, Lisa M Christian, Elissa S Epel, Christin E Burd, Jue Lin, Samuel H Molli, Rebecca Andridge, Harry T Reis, Janice K Kiecolt-Glaser

Department of Psychology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA.Department of Psychology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA. · pubmed

Paper

Abstract

While happily married couples may age more slowly, the effect's magnitude varies widely. This variation could stem from partners' reinforcing each other's healthy and unhealthy behaviors. Grounded in symptom-system fit theory, we examined associations of marital quality (marital satisfaction and behavior) with biological aging in 107 middle-aged and older mixed-gender couples both cross-sectionally and over two years, assessing the moderating role of couples' health behaviors. Cross-sectionally, happier couples had lower T cell p16

The following analysis is generated by AI and may contain errors. It is separate from the authors’ abstract and is not peer review.

Research summary

Happily married couples may experience slower biological aging, influenced by their health behaviors. The paper explores the relationship between marital quality and biological aging, which is pertinent to understanding factors that could influence longevity.

Author of this paper? Send a correction.