Many studies have shown that marriage can have valuable benefits from both a physical and mental standpoint. Research has illustrated that married people are less likely to get cancer, less likely to have heart attacks, and also have a lower risk of developing dementia later in life. Studies have also found that married people are less likely to suffer from depression.
Sadly, since same-sex couples are denied the right to marry in many states, this might mean that they could miss out on some of these benefits. In fact, a newly released study published in the March issue of the Journal of Health and Social Behavior has shown just that.
Researchers at the University of Michigan and the University of Texas at Austin analyzed data from the National Health Interview Surveys (NHIS) from 1997 to 2009. Their findings showed that same-sex male couples who cohabitated were 61 percent more likely to report poor health when compared to married heterosexual males of the same age and socioeconomic status. The same was found for women—same-sex cohabitating women were about 46% more likely to suffer from poor health when compared to married heterosexual women of the same background.
What can account for this disparity in health? For one thing, same-sex couples are denied the many benefits that can come from walking down the aisle. Not only are these benefits important from a financial and legal standpoint (health insurance, taxes, etc.), there are also emotional and mental benefits as well.
According to the researchers, LGBT couples suffer from social stigma and mental distress which can have far-reaching effects on their physical health and their overall well-being. According to the lead author of the study, Hui Liu, “Research consistently suggests that ‘out’ sexual minorities experience heightened levels of stress and higher levels of discrimination, and these experiences may adversely affect the health of this population,”
In other words, discrimination can do more than just complicate a gay person’s ability to get married or adopt a child. It can chip away at their sense of self-worth and their feelings of security and value. They often feel like second-class citizens, and no wonder: It’s how they are often treated by our government. They are denied the rights that heterosexual people enjoy and they are often bullied and harassed on top of it. All of this stress and anxiety can actually end up impacting a person’s mood as well as their physical health. The mind-body connection is quite powerful, and when one area of our lives is in distress, it can often impact us across the board.
Hence, in denying gay couples the right to wed and be recognized by the government, we are doing more then denying them to the right to enjoy financial benefits. Getting married isn’t just a cause to celebrate and file for joint tax returns, it’s also a huge milestone that helps couples to take their commitment to the next level. It allows couples to solidify their union and announce their love to the world. It makes them more than just a couple, it makes them a family, and in doing so, it offers them love, support, and stability. When gay couples are denied the right to marry, they are denied the right to all of these amazing and joyful benefits.
As this study shows, getting married is about more than just a slip of paper, a tux, or a big white dress—it’s about being recognized as a couple under the law, and about being treated as equals by the government and as a society. Until all gay people are allowed the right to marry, we will likely continue to see studies such as these. Although saddening, these findings are important because they highlight the physical and emotional strain that gay couples are under in today’s society, and they help to remind us all that there is still work to be done in their fight for civil rights.
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