DIVORCE has a huge impact on your health, even if you remarry, a study has found.

Divorced or widowed people have 20 per cent more chronic health conditions such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer than married people, and also suffer more mobility problems such as having trouble climbing stairs and walking.

Research to be published in the Journal of Health and Social Behaviour reveals that interviews with more than 8000 people found they entered adulthood with a “stock” of health and each time a person divorced or was widowed they lost a chunk, putting them at risk of chronic illness.

The Chicago University study found divorcees who didn’t remarry suffered the greatest ill-health due to a drop in income, and a rise in stress related to shared child care and possible custody issues.

Researcher Linda Waite said people who never married suffered 12 per cent more mobility limitations and 13 per cent more depressive symptoms than married people but reported no difference in the number of chronic health conditions.

“Some health situations like depression seem to respond both quickly and strongly to changes in current conditions,” Mrs Waite said.

“In contrast, conditions such as diabetes and heart disease develop slowly over a substantial period and show the impact of past experiences, which is why health is undermined by divorce or widowhood even when a person remarries.”