Post-marital weight gain

From chocolate ice-cream to chilling out, why do all our favourite things have to pack the nasty surprise of making us fat?

Like a cruel joke, just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, it did. Sorry ladies, but as of last week yet another culprit has cropped up on that dreaded black list of belly ballooning bothers: marriage.

Yes, that fairytale wedding you have always dreamt of just might be the latest push down the slippery slope to a plus-size predicament.

A new study has shown that women are far more likely to suddenly gain weight within the first two years of marriage than unmarried women of the same age. Moreover, the likelihood of such weight gain actually constituting a health risk is statistically significant.

Dmitry Tumin and Zhenchao Qian are two sociology professors at Ohio State University in the US. They conducted research on weight gain due to marital transitions, and presented their results last week at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association in Las Vegas.

The study confirms earlier findings from previous studies, also suggesting women have a tendency for post-marital weight gain.

The researchers used data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth conducted nationally in the US back in 1979. The original survey sampled men and women between the ages of 14 and 22, and included the gathering of Body Mass Index scores, which is a simple method for determining degrees of overweight and obesity in large numbers of people. The same participants were sampled again every year up to 1994, and then every other year since then.

While many studies have predominantly examined weight gain in women, this study also had something very interesting to say about men too. Men too are guilty of post-marital transition weight gain; only it happens long after the echoes of wedding bells have faded.

Men show the same belly-bulging tendencies but do so after divorce, not marriage. With the local buzz around divorce debates finally fading, it seems men unfortunate enough to be the first statistics within the local context have received fair warning: if your marriage fails, it’s time to hit the gym hard.

In both instances, for both men and women the most profound changes in weight occurred among those over the age of 30. It seems the older we are, the more lifestyle changes tend to represent a shock to the system.

For women unfortunately, it doesn’t just stop at expanding dress sizes; unhappy marriages and relationship problems tend to hit the fairer sex harder too.

While secure and happy relationships are certainly good for one’s general health and wellbeing, love troubles have been shown to slow women’s recovery from various medical conditions, raise blood pressure and cholesterol levels and lead to a less physically active lifestyle. Breast cancer research also shows survival rates are negatively affected by problems at home.

If that’s what the figures say, let’s see what we can do to avoid your figure becoming the latest statistic.

Brides-to-be take note: here are some preventive measures you can take to ensure your transition to married life remains free of unwanted wobble, and the figure that strutted down the aisle on your big day is not forever banished to your wedding album, never to be seen again.

As you are more likely to be eating together with your partner now, avoid matching portions; if he eats more than you do, simply stick to the same portion sizes you ate before.

If you are experiencing difficulty adjusting to your new lifestyle, beware of comfort eating; naughty treats really won’t solve the problem.

Now that everything has changed, it just might be the perfect opportunity to get into some new healthy habits.

Join a gym, take up a new active leisure pursuit or competitive sport, run or cycle outside, or even get into a home exercise plan alone or with friends. If you’re in the process of developing new habits, then make exercise a part of your new routine now, before it’s too late; it will be a lot harder to get back into it later on.

If family planning is already on the agenda, avoid overeating and gaining too much weight during your pregnancy. Eating for two is not a licence to eat as much as you can, and if you overdo it, you’ll find the weight a nightmare to lose after your baby is born.

Talk to your family doctor or midwife about the specific nutritional requirements of pregnancy and how much weight you can healthily expect to gain.

You may have felt more motivated to remain in shape when you were single, but if you start letting the small things slide now that you’ve found Mr Right, then you’ll be surprised how quickly the kilos can pile on.

Continuing to avoid those fattening treats you steered clear of before won’t just help keep your waistline trim, but your general health will benefit in the long run too.

Don’t let post marital weight gain sabotage your marriage, and men, play your cards right and give her all the support she needs because statistically, marriage is actually better for your health than it is for hers!

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