wedding rings

The Journal of Hypertension, recently released a study by researchers at Harvard Medical School that being married may actually be good for your blood pressure. Researchers followed 325 individuals over a period of two years and monitored their blood pressure rates. Half of the subjects were married while the other half were single.

According to this study a “healthy” person should follow a cycle of blood pressure throughout the day. A person’s blood pressure should raise during the day and then fall over night. A ten percent drop in  systolic pressure–the number at the top when reading blood pressure– is considered “normal” for an average person. The researchers refer to this pattern as “nocturnal dipping”.

Of the 325 individuals tested those who were married were more likely to follow this pattern of “nocturnal dipping”. Married men especially experienced this throughout the study. Researchers came to this conclusion after taking into account age,  weight, medical history, socio economic status, diet, and body mass index in addition to a person marital status.

It is believed that marriage gives a person an emotional and economic support system, which in turn allows a person to better manage stress and blood pressure.