In an earlier study, divorce or marital separation more than doubled the risk of suicide in men but was unrelated to suicide risks in women. Another study linked lower blood pressure in men with their social support from a spouse. This isn't the case for cohabiting couples. They generally don't share their money in a common budget and don't invest together. They manage their money through separate accounts and take separate trips or vacations.
Married couples have more than twice the assets of other households.
Instead of a couple not affording to get married, they can't afford not to. Apparently children aren't the drain on family life that one might think. Divorced and single women are four to five times as likely to be victims of crime, ten times more likely to be victims of rape, and three times more likely to be victims of aggravated assault. The preponderance of violence against women is perpetrated by boyfriends, cohabiting men and ex-husbands. Child abuse happens much more frequently with boyfriends, cohabiting partners and stepfathers than it does with married husbands who are biological fathers.