Marriage Can Be Catching

By Janice M. Horowitz

Spouses may share the same bed and even each other's mannerisms. Now scientists conclude that husbands and wives also share something not nearly as sweet: their diseases. Examining the ills of 8,000 English couples, researchers publishing in the British Medical Journal found that when one partner is depressed or has an ulcer, the other is twice as likely as a member of a healthy couple to have the same problem. High blood pressure, high cholesterol and asthma also seem to run in pairs. Some of these phenomena can easily be explained. Spouses are exposed to the same allergens, which can play a role in triggering asthma attacks, and they tend to have similar diets, which can affect blood pressure and cholesterol levels. And certainly if one partner is depressed, it's a bummer for the other. But ulcers? Doctors know they are caused by a bacterium that's not contagious. "For some of these, there's simply no good explanation," says Julia Hippisley-Cox, senior author of the study. What we do know: if your spouse becomes ill with something, you should get a checkup.