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So much for love handles!
The “happy weight” phenomenon suggests that content couples tend to soften up because they’re Netflix and chillin’ with ice cream instead of sweatin’ it out at the gym.
But new UCLA research reports that high-quality marriages may actually protect against obesity, meaning that a strong emotional bond may be just as crucial to physical health as diet and exercise.
“We’ve known for years that social relationships impact health, with supportive connections increasing survival rates by up to 50%,” said lead study author Arpana Church, a neuroscientist at UCLA Health.
“The biological mechanisms explaining this connection have remained elusive,” she added. “Our study reveals a novel pathway showing how marriage and emotional support literally get ‘under the skin’ to influence obesity risk.”
For the study, nearly 100 LA-area residents were evaluated from brain to bottom.
UCLA researchers looked at everything from their body mass index and diet style to their brain imaging, hormone levels, emotional support and poop quality.
The study authors determined that married people with strong support had lower BMIs and fewer signs of food addiction than those in less nurturing unions.
When shown images of food, the unhappily married people had more robust activity in their dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, a brain region that regulates cravings.
Bachelors and spinsters — with and without strong social support — did not show the same brain patterns.
The complex brain-gut communication system proved key.
The blissed-out spouses had noticeably positive changes in their tryptophan metabolites, which are produced in the gut to regulate inflammation, metabolism, immune responses and neurological function.
One remarkable metabolite is serotonin, a hormone that influences mood, sleep and appetite.
Speaking of mood, the gleefully betrothed also showed higher oxytocin levels than singletons.
The so-called “love hormone” reduces stress and blood pressure and even helps wounds heal faster.
Church theorized that it may improve brain regions involved in self-control while promoting a healthier gut.
“Think of oxytocin as a conductor orchestrating a symphony between the brain and gut,” Church explained.
“It strengthens the brain’s ability to resist food cravings while promoting beneficial metabolic processes in the gut, both of which help maintain healthy weight.”
In short, harmonious partnerships may encourage more self-control, better metabolism and higher oxytocin levels.
“Marriage may serve as a training ground for self-control,” said Church. “Maintaining a long-term partnership requires consistently overriding destructive impulses and aligning with long-term goals, which may strengthen the same brain circuits involved in managing eating behavior.”
Church acknowledged several limitations to her study, published Wednesday in the journal Gut Microbes, including that most participants were overweight or obese and the data was captured at just one point in time.
Still, she said it’s important to foster “long-lasting, positive and stable” relationships for better health. Studies have already shown that strong social connections can lower the risk of dementia.
And if you’re worried about your waistline, maybe cool it on the Netflix and ice cream.
