Charlotte Named Fifth Best City in America for Happy Marriages

Planning a summer wedding? Hoping for a lifetime of wedded bliss? The likelihood that your partnership will grow into a long, happy marriage may depend on where you live. And according to the 2012 RealAge Report, folks who live in Charlotte have a great shot – ranking #5.

Says RealAge: “One of HGTV’s Top ’20 Great Gardens’ in the U.S., the Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden is a hotspot for weddings in the City of Trees. We’re guessing that’s where the not-so-newlyweds in the Charlotte area spend a chunk of their free time, too. If so, it could be the secret to their marital bliss. Researchers have found that spending just 5 minutes a day outside in a natural setting seriously lifts your mood and your self-esteem, which makes both you and your mate way more fun to be around.”

According to the 2012 RealAge Report, the happiest marriages in America hail from these top 10 cities:
1. SALT LAKE CITY, UT
2. GREENVILLE, SC
3. KNOXVILLE, TN
4. CINCINNATI, OH
5. CHARLOTTE, NC
6. RALEIGH-DURHAM, NC
7. HARTFORD, CT
8. KANSAS CITY, MO
9. GRAND RAPIDS,MI
10. MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL, MN

Source: RealAge.com

“A happy marriage is a key factor in influencing RealAge, or your body’s individual ‘health age,'” says Dr. Mike Roizen, founder of RealAge and The RealAge Test®, and Chief Wellness Officer of The Cleveland Clinic. A long-term, loving relationship can make a woman’s RealAge as much as 2.5 years younger and a man’s 4.2 years younger.

Why? Says Dr. Roizen: “Happily married men and women enjoy better overall health, are less depressed and anxious than single, divorced or widowed Americans. And a happy marriage is even more important for men – which helps explain why insurance premiums are higher for a divorced or single man. Happily married people encourage healthy behaviors – like eating well – and discourage unhealthy activities like smoking. Add emotional support through good times and bad as well as laughter to the equation, and you’ve got a recipe better tasting than mom’s apple pie.”

Marriage is one of the 22 individual factors used to rank the youngest and oldest metro areas in the country revealed in the 2012 RealAge Report , an analysis of the 2011 regional data generated by the patented RealAge Test® . RealAge.com’s landmark online assessment has been taken by over 29 million people since its inception in 1998.

Wondering how your own marriage measures up? Take the online RealAge Marriage Test and find out how you core on 7 essential marriage skills – among them, setting ground rules, spending time together, and resolving conflict. If you’re married but sometimes feel as if you’re “no longer in love,” or are afraid your relationship is in trouble, the free assessment will help you to discover how to fall in love again . . . with your spouse.

About RealAge
RealAge.com is a leading health and wellness site centered around the groundbreaking RealAge Test®, a scientific but simple-to-take test that calculates how old your body thinks you are. The patented test, which launched in 1998 and has been taken by more than 29 million people, is backed by powerful new technology that allows it to be constantly updated with the latest medical studies. Anyone who takes the Test receives a personalized Grow Younger Plan designed to turn back your body clock. The site also offers health tips; dozens of other tests; and practical, inspiring information. RealAge aggressively guards users’ privacy and does not share its members’ identities with third-party advertisers. RealAge, Inc., is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sharecare, the interactive health and wellness social platform co-founded by Jeff Arnold and two-time Emmy®Award-winning television host Dr. Mehmet Oz.
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About Sharecare
Launched in 2010 and based in Atlanta, GA, Sharecare is an interactive, social Q & A platform that allows people to ask, learn and act upon questions of health and wellness. Created by Jeff Arnold and Dr. Mehmet Oz, in partnership with Harpo Studios, Remark Media (NASDAQ: MARK), Sony Pictures Television, and Discovery Communications, the company’s innovative approach provides the consumer access to a wide array of health and wellness experts ranging from hospitals to doctors, specialists to non-profits, to healthcare companies and active health consumers, creating a thriving community where healthcare knowledge is built, shared and put into practice.

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