health
Fidelity to marriage is good for you. The surprising benefits of faithfulness
June is Fidelity Month — a time to celebrate faithfulness to God, our spouses and families, our communities, and our country. At a moment when our culture increasingly celebrates autonomy and self-fulfillment, fidelity can seem old-fashioned. Yet the evidence points in the opposite direction.
TL;DR
- Fidelity Month celebrates faithfulness to God, spouses, families, communities, and country.
- Faithful marriages are associated with better physical health, emotional well-being, financial stability, and happiness.
- Married individuals tend to have lower rates of cardiovascular disease, mental health struggles, and certain cancers.
- Marriage provides social and emotional support, encouraging healthier choices and perseverance through challenges.
- Men specifically experience benefits like decreased risky behavior, lower substance abuse rates, and reduced antisocial/illegal behavior.
- Married men also tend to earn more than their unmarried counterparts.
- Married women are less likely to report loneliness, and married mothers are more likely to describe themselves as 'very happy'.
- Declining marriage rates and later marriages may contribute to increased dissatisfaction and isolation.
- The benefits of marriage stem from the quality of the marriage, specifically from trust, commitment, and security built through fidelity.
- Fidelity provides profound psychological benefits, including a deep sense of psychological peace and security.
- Relationships lacking faithfulness, exclusivity, and permanence are more vulnerable to insecurity and instability.
- Faithfulness helps people flourish, contributing to better health, happiness, stronger families, and more stable communities.