This project is studying relationships between divorce and body weight by comparing how people enter and exit from marital roles over their life course. To study this, we analyzed data from a representative national sample of 2,445 adults in the U.S. that is available from the National Survey of Midlife Development in the U.S. (MIDUS). Among men, those who married earlier and spent more time divorced reported less weight gain, and men who had more divorces reported more weight gain. Among women, those who married later had less obesity, women who experienced widowhood had less weight gain, and women who spent more time divorced had lower weights. Overall, this suggests that patterns of marital history are associated with current body weight and weight changes.

Body weights are increasing in the United States and it is important to identify predictors of weight gain. Divorce and separation are also increasing in the U.S. and prior research suggests that marital status is related to body weight. This project sought to identify how patterns of marital changes are associated with marriage and body weight for men and women. It showed that examining patterns of marital changes provided additional insights about body weight beyond examining only current marital status. Overall, separation/divorce was associated with less weight gain among men, and widowhood with less weight gain among women.

We have identified relationships between marital history and body weight, presented it to a USDA meeting in 2007, and are submitting a manuscript for publication in a scientific journal.

This research provides information for health, nutrition, and family professionals that deal with body weight issues in their clients. We hope that the findings will help inform policies about nutrition and families, programs that deal with food, exercise, and marriage, and eduation/counseling by health and family professionals.

Marital Status and weight

National Research Initiative

Karla Hanson