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Top 7 Ways an Unhappy Marriage Can Ruin Your Health

By Sheri & Bob Stritof, About.com

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Just as a happy marriage can keep you healthy, an unhappy, stressful relationship can shorten your life. Here are some of the ways that discord in a marriage can make you ill.

1. Changes in Systems

Unhappy married folks, especially women, experience changes in their endocrine and immune systems.

2. Hormones

You may have elevated levels of epinephrine and cortisol hormones.

3. Blood Pressure

Stressed individuals often show increases in blood pressure readings.

4. Pain

Folks in unhappy relationships could have a greater experience of pain.

5. Gum Disease

People are prone to more gum disease and cavities when facing marital problems.

6. Ulcers

You may suffer from ulcers in the stomach and intestine.

7. Influenza and Common Cold

Lack of harmony in marriage can cause couples to have a higher incidence of influenza and the common cold.
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