Risk of mortality and coronary heart disease by marital status in middle-aged men in The Netherlands

Between 1972 and 1974, a cardiovascular screening survey was conducted in a stratified sample of 3365 men aged 45-59 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Follow-up data collected in 1982 were used to examine the association between marital status and mortality and coronary heart disease while adjusting for various control variables. Nonmarried men had significantly higher relative risks (RR) (95% confidence interval (CI)) of 1.7 (95% CI: 1.2-2.3) and 2.2 (95% CI: 1.2-4.2) for all-cause mortality and coronary mortality than the married. Never married men showed the most consistent relationships with all-cause and coronary mortality, with RR of 2.3 (95% CI: 1.6-3.4) and 2.9 (95% CI: 1.4-6.2) respectively. The RR for these endpoints among the widowed and divorced were all close to unity, except for the risk of coronary mortality among the widowed, which was 2.9 (95% CI: 0.9-10.2). Not being married also increased the risk for fatal and total reinfarction, with RR of 3.6 (95% CI: 1.4-9.1) and 2.5 (95% CI: 1.1-5.6) respectively. The results suggest that in middle-aged Dutch males, the health consequences of not being married may differ for the never married, divorced, and widowed. Selective mating, differential lifestyles or health habits, and lack of social integration were offered as possible explanations.