Hitched and Healthier

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Gay men who live in states where same-sex marriage is legal are healthier, have less stress, make fewer doctor visits and have lower healthcare costs, reports USA Today, citing a study published in the American Journal of Public Health, for which the abstract is available online here.

This sort of data is going to be increasingly available and will help show that denying marriage equality has seriously negative repercussions not just for gay people, but in terms of broader social costs as well.

6 Comments for “Hitched and Healthier”

  1. posted by Houndentenor on

    Do you really think that people who oppose gay rights care if we are healthier or happier?

  2. posted by Regan DuCasse on

    The social and financial costs of welfare have been nearly immeasurable. Our wallets are tapped involuntarily to support the lifestyles of people who CHOOSE to be parents.
    Well, that’s so very unfair to those of us who don’t casually and inconsiderately procreate.
    And obesity is a seriously major public health issue too…
    Guess Maggie doesn’t want to really have THAT conversation either, ya think?

  3. posted by Bobby on

    As a libertarian, I think this article is ridiculous. Health has to do with INDIVIDUAL lifestyle choices and INDIVIDUAL biology, not whether same-sex marriage is illegal or legal. Besides, I could never be happy in Massachusetts with their horrible high taxes, regulation, political correctness, and all that crap. As a single gay man who has given up on dating and finding a lover, I am perfectly happy with my books, my Netflix, and my friends. In fact, my last relationship showed me that boyfriends are more trouble than they’re worth, and same-sex marriage is an unrealistic goal for me. See? Happiness is a question of individual needs, not collective ones.

    As for obesity being a major public health, go ahead and prove it! I’d rather be fat or obese than catch AIDS through bareback sex, Regan. In fact, this war against obesity is eerily similar to the previous war to find gays working in government (1950s). And as a man who happens to be “overweight”, I resent a society that embraces tattoos, body piercings, public funding of planned parenthood, yet thinks they have the right to call me unhealthy without even knowing my health history.

    Unlike those gays that get AIDS and need time off work to see their doctor, I NEVER call in sick, and RARELY visit doctors unless is something major like a root canal, which has nothing to do with weight.

    In fact, the problem with this article lies in that it makes GENERALIZATIONS about people and the consequences of policy.

    Is there no more common sense? What’s next? An article that claims people who eat carrots are happier than those that don’t? Jesus F. Christ, you want to get married? Get married. Don’t wait for government permission, just hire a priest, talk to a lawyer, get a power of attorney, joint life insurance, a living will, a trust, and you’ll have most of the benefits of marriage. But stop being unhappy because the straight majority in some states doesn’t want to change the definition of marriage. Frankly, I can understand them since nowadays “change” means a minority gets pushed ahead while the majority gets pushed back. Don’t believe me? Google terms like “white privilege” and “whiteness studies,” they actually teach that crap in college. Even Obama has set up an Office of Diversity to ensure that less white males get hired.

    http://libertarians4freedom.blogspot.com/

    • posted by Inahandbasket on

      So who’s going to take care of you when you’re old (or not so old) and alone? You’re OK with dying alone?

      You are one self centered, arrogant and sad individual.

      • posted by Bobby on

        Well, I have my sister, my niece, my nephew, and if I’d rather maintain my independence, I’ll probably buy a Long Term Care policy that specifies a state-of-the-art nursing home.

        By the way, you’re the one displaying arrogance by assuming that everyone must have the same life outlook you have. As for me being a sad individual, really? I think people who knows what they want are the happiests people in the world. As for being self-centered, guilty as charged, you should read Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand and learn that everything in life is self-interest and a trade. If someday I can afford it, I’ll gladly date a gold digger as long as he understands what he can get and what he must give. And if I can’t afford it, I’ll be happy on my own.

  4. posted by Inahandbasket on

    Yes, Ayn Rand… The heroine of middle school boys everywhere. How fitting. You reaffirmed my suspicion.

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