Incorporating health into models of marriage choice: Demographic and sociological perspectives

This study uses data from the National Longitudinal Study of Youth to examine how health-related characteristics and behaviors affect first marriage rates among young American adults. The results emphasize the importance of including health variables in models of marriage choice by demonstrating that persons with unhealthy behaviors (such as high levels of alcohol consumption and the use of hard drugs) and with physical characteristics that are typically associated with poorer past and future health statuses (obesity and short stature) have lower marriage rates than their healthier counterparts.