Women Gain Weight After Wedding, Men After Divorce; Study Says

Bride Satoko Inouye, 36, puts a ring on a finger of her groom Tomohiro Shibata 42, as I-Fairy, a four-foot tall seated robot, wearing a wreath of flowers, directs their wedding ceremony at a Tokyo restaurant Sunday, May 16, 2010. The wedding was the first time a marriage had been led by a robot, according to manufacturer Kokoro Co. (AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye) (AP2010)

Marriage and divorce are both triggers for weight gain, Ohio researchers claimed Monday.

According to scientists at Ohio State University (OSU), women are more likely to gain weight after their wedding day, while men pile on the pounds after divorce, with both marital transitions acting as "weight shocks."

"Divorces for men and, to some extent, marriages for women, promote weight gains that may be large enough to pose a health risk," study leader Dmitry Tumin said.

The chances of major weight gains following marital transitions increased the most for people over the age of 30.

"For someone in their mid-20s, there is not much of a difference in the probability of gaining weight between someone who just got married and someone who never married. But later in life, there is much more of a difference," Tumin added.

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The study followed 10,071 people from 1986 to 2008 to assess weight gain in the two years following a marriage or divorce, taking into consideration a wide range of factors that could affect weight, including pregnancy, poverty socioeconomic status and education.

"Married women often have a larger role around the house than men do, and they may have less time to exercise and stay fit than similar unmarried women," according to OSU professor of sociology Zhenchao Qian. "On the other hand, studies show that married men get a health benefit from marriage, and they lose that benefit once they get divorced, which may lead to their weight gain."

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