Compared to women who readily talked out their troubles, women who held back from voicing their concerns during disagreements with their partners were more likely to experience negative health effects during the follow-up period of a 10-year study. Use regular heart-to-heart chats to calmly disclose your concerns and help promote solutions.

Mounting evidence suggests stress can harm your health, so it's no surprise that a recent study reveals a link between marital strain and decreased longevity in women. The study of approximately 3,000 married or cohabitating men and women revealed that married men were half as likely to die during a 10-year period compared to unmarried men. While marital status did not correlate to mortality rates in women, women in the study who held back their feelings during conflicts with their spouses did have a higher mortality rate. Constant strife and discord introduces chronic stress into people's lives, so being happily partnered is key to enjoying the health benefits of this RealAge factor. Although bottling up feelings may seem like a good way to avoid conflict, it doesn't cause negative feelings to go away. Instead, suppressed anger, hurt, or irritation may lead to stress, anxiety, depression, and a depressed immune system, all of which may increase the risk of chronic conditions.