Science / Medicine : Death Risk High for Singles

Unmarried middle-aged men and women face twice the risk of dying within 10 years as those still living with their spouses, researchers at UC San Francisco reported last week. The study of 7,651 people nationwide came to no conclusion about why unmarried people in the group died at the higher rate, but suggested divorce was a key factor in putting people at risk.

The researchers found that 23% of the men between 45 and 54 who lived alone or with someone other than a spouse died within a decade. Only 11% of married men studied died during that period. Of the unmarried women in the same age group, 7.7% died. Only 4% of married women died. The higher death rate seemed connected to low income, with poorer women at greater risk. Men who had been previously married were at the most risk, researchers said.