Doesn't seem like a 'stretch' at all to me, given that we know chronic stress is a serious risk factor for cardiovascular disease.

And chronic stress in relationships may be MORE DANGEROUS FOR WOMEN than for men. Men who are married – happily or not – are generally far healthier than their unmarried buddies. A man’s physical health apparently benefits simply from the state of being married, whether or not he rates it as a good marriage.

But a woman’s overall health can be significantly threatened by trouble at home, according to researchers at the University of Utah. Women respond to unhappy marriages by being three times more likely to develop METABOLIC SYNDROME - a cluster of serious cardiac risk factors that can lead to heart disease.

Women who reported high levels of marital strain also reported depression, high blood pressure, high LDL cholesterol, obesity and other signs of metabolic syndrome.

The Utah researchers recruited 280 couples married an average of 20 years. Each couple was assessed on the positive aspects of their marriage, (emotional warmth, mutual support, ability to confide secrets to each other), the negative aspects (arguments, feelings of hostility, frequency and severity of disagreements) and symptoms of depression. Couples with pre-existing heart disease were excluded.

Researchers found that both men and women were more likely to display symptoms of depression if they reported marital strain. However, men did not have a related increase in other health problems. Women, on the other hand, saw their risk of metabolic syndrome go up when they experienced more negative aspects of marriage compared to women with more positive aspects.

Happily married women face a significantly lower risk of developing metabolic syndrome than their unhappily married counterparts. But women who are widowed had nearly SIX TIMES the risk of developing metabolic syndrome.

For more on this, see: "Poor Marriage = Poor Heart Health For Women" at:
http://www.myheartsisters.org/2009/06/29/poor-marriage/