A new study from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health found that women who tie the knot early in life, before they’re 18, are a whopping 41 percent more likely to suffer from serious mental health disorders, including depression, bipolar disorder, panic disorder, and antisocial personality disorder.
Researchers previously knew that child brides are traditionally more at risk for physical problems including HIV transmission and death from childbirth, but this is the first study about mental health, said study co-author Dr. Bernard Le Foll. The existence of the disorders were found to exist in young women more than 1.5 times than men.
“Our research may help governments deliver mental health services, and could help inform debate around marriage legislation,” Le Foll said.
What sort of treatment helps to manage these disorders? Prescription meds and cognitive-behavioral therapy, according to PsychCentral.
It seems to be a class issue as well:
Women who were married at a young age were also more likely to have a lower level of education and income, and come from rural areas of the United States. These women were also at higher risk for nicotine dependence.
Studies like these seem to go fall in line with stats about high divorce rates in the Bible Belt. What do you think about child marriage?
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