Serial dating unhealthy for women's wellness

A story released today by the Associated Press reports that according to a study, called British Household Panel Survey, women who get involved in serial relationships after their long-term partnership break down often slump into depression, but, strangely, men fare better.

Men and women who are in a long-term relationship are happier than singles, although men do better in cohabitation while marriage is more beneficial for women. It also cited that women have a harder time emotionally when relationships fail.

The more breakups they experience, and the more times they move on to other relationships, the likelier women are prone to suffer from depression and anxiety, it said.

Among men who re-enter the mating market after their long-term relationship breaks down, those in the best spirits were those who had gone through two or more short-term partnerships, said researchers.

The research data began in 1991 and includes information supplied annually from 10,000 British adults. It includes a 12-item questionnaire designed to assess levels of psychological distress, depression and anxiety. The study analyzed the returns for the year 2000 from 4,430 individuals aged under 65.

Of that tally, nine percent had remained single throughout their lives and over half had been in a stable marriage or cohabitation during their lifetime.

Of the remainder, 35 percent had experienced one partnership break up during their lifetime. A third of these were still alone; two-thirds had found another partner, including a "small number" who had had several further partnerships.

The study is published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, an organ of the British Medical Association (BMA).