How to avoid a 'broken' heart: Married people more likely to survive cardiac arrest, study shows

(Pixabay/Gerd Altmann)

Not a believer of the sacred Christian institution of marriage? Convinced that couples are better off with cohabitation? Well, here's something that might convince you into settling down.

A recent study from the United Kingdom showed that individuals who take their marriage vows are less likely to have their hearts broken, in the medical sense.

That is, married people are more likely to survive a heart attack compared to single people, according to a study conducted by cardiologists from the University of East Anglia in Norfolk, U.K.

Married people were 14 percent less likely to die from cardiac arrest compared to single people, according to the study.

The same research also showed that individuals who have already said their "I do's" in front of God and the Church are more likely to recuperate and be discharged from the hospital faster after suffering from a heart attack compared to uncommitted patients.

Married heart attack patients spend an average of two fewer days in the hospital than single survivors, based on the study which was presented earlier this week during a British Cardiovascular Society meeting in Manchester, England.

Dr. Nicholas Gollop, a clinical research fellow and a study co-author, nevertheless assured single people that there is nothing to be worried about.

"Our results should not be a cause for concern for single people who have had a heart attack," Gollop said in an article published by Newsmax.

"But they should certainly be a reminder to the medical community of the importance of considering the support a heart attack survivor will get once they're discharged," he added.

The British researchers reached these interesting conclusions on the correlation of civil status and recovery rates from heart attacks by examining data from more than 25,000 heart attack patients in England.

Dr. Mike Knapton, associate medical director of the British Heart Foundation, stressed that emotional support is very important for those who suffered cardiac arrest.

"A heart attack can have both devastating physical and psychological effects—most of which are hidden from the outside world. These findings suggest the support offered by a spouse can have a beneficial effect on heart attack survivors, perhaps helping to minimise the impact of a heart attack," Knapton told Newsmax.