George H.W. Bush Died Less Than 8 Months After His Wife of 73 Years. Doctors Explain Why That ’s So Common

George H.W. Bush died in his Houston home on Nov. 30, less than eight months after his wife of 73 years, Barbara. He was 94. While Bush’s case may seem extraordinary, it’s actually fairly common for spouses to die around the same time. A 2013 study published in the Journals of Gerontology found that the death of a spouse raises a person’s risk of dying by around 30%, compared to those who are still married. Some estimates are even higher. Some research has shown that in the six months after the death of a spouse, the bereaved face odds of mortality 40% to 70% greater than the general public, according to the American Psychological Association. This phenomenon can likely be explained, at least in part, by common-sense factors; married couples tend to be around the same age and share many lifestyle habits, for example. In the Bushes’ case, George H.W. and Barbara were 17 and 16, respectively, when they met in 1941, and George H.W. was 94 when he died, while Barbara was 92. Their 73-year union made them the longest-married presidential couple ever. While Bush’s cause of death was not immediately known, the emotional devastation of losing a life partner can take a toll, sometimes even causing a potentially deadly condition commonly known as broken-heart syndrome (or by its medical name, takotsubo cardiomyopathy). “The brain has a system in it to deal with acute, serious, life-threatening stress,” explains Dr. Martin Samuels, the chair of...
Source: TIME: Health - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized healthytime medicine onetime Source Type: news