Long Relationships Key To Good Mental Health

A study has found that long relationships leave a positive effect on people's mental health even without marriage. According to this study, if a relationship between a man and woman is older than five years then possibility of committing suicide or taking alcohol or drugs due to depression gets significantly lowered.

The facts revealed by study suggested that symptoms of the disease were seen in 23 percent of people who had been in a relationship for less than two years on the other hand less only ten percent of those who were depressed who had been in a relationship for between two and four years.

The study conducted on 1,000 New Zealanders by a team at University of Otago, found that longer relationships resulted in lower rates of mental health problems. It was observed in the study that out of 30-year-olds who were not in a relationship, 12 percent were alcohol or drug addicts. This rate of these addicts was 13.5 percent for people who had been in a relationship for less than two years.

Lead researcher Sheree Gibb quoted, "This is a contrast to previous studies, which have reported lower rates of mental health problems among people in legal marriages than in cohabiting relationships."