Does cheating prolongs or shortens lifespan?

By Oyindamola Isijola
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There was a  relationship programme where the moderator  said that men cheat to live longer and also one of the speakers  also talked about how having more than one wives  make men live longer.  Likewise a Ghanaian businessman, Ibrah One had shared his findings which stated  that men who do not cheat, die early.

Cheating in a marriage or relationship has to do with a partner betraying or breaking the other partner’s trust and marital vows. Being cheated on by someone you truly love is always devastating and disappointing. Although, both gender cheat in relationships. Research has shown that men cheat more and also are better than women in relationships. Men cheat because they choose to and they have their various reasons for cheating, perhaps living longer is one of their reasons for cheating. But does cheating really make men live longer?.

Reacting to this, Mr. Ayo  said “Although cheating is not an advisable thing to do, at the same time it can make a man live longer if it makes him feel better and at ease especially when he is not experiencing peace of mind at home.  Men often cheat when they feel underappreciated and insecure at home. When worries like bills, dues, children and chores come  in, the wife may stop paying attention to the husband and the couples may stop appreciating each other like they should and in  situation where the wife  keeps troubling and pressurizing the husband for money and other things,  the strange woman often makes the man feel better.

Also, a married woman who pleaded anonymity has this to say,”To me, this is wrong, it is not proper. Cheating does not make men live longer rather the  repercussion of their actions are always dangerous and disastrous. Most men enjoy cheating,  perhaps because they do not  find their wives pleasant anymore or they are getting tired of their wives’ nagging.  But cheating is not always the best option for them to live longer. It can never make men live longer, instead it makes them die prematurely. There are a lot of deadly diseases transferable through cheating or infidelity even if the man have just one partner he is dating.”

According to a lady who simply gave her name as Joan

“I actually feel cheating will not make anybody live longer, though they might enjoy the fun as there are some men that actually derive fun from cheating but still I don’t feel it will make them live longer. If it is actually someone you love that you got married  to and you are cheating on the person, such men will not be at peace because they are always looking for ways to keep their tracks  and  it might actually lead to high blood pressure because when the wife finds out that her spouse is cheating on her, she might not take it easy with the man and things like that could make their health deteriorate.

“Furthermore, for a man who love with his wife but engage himself in cheating  will not want her to find out and  always covering his tracks, so that,  his wife will not find out, that is if he actually really love the wife. And if he is always doing this, he may not have that peace of mind  because he will always be scared of his wife finding out. But for a man who does not really love his wife, he will not mind if his wife finds out or not. Again, what if the other girl the man is cheating with finds out that her manfriend is cheating on her, and being a violent girlfriend,  she might take it really bad and kill the man, so, I don’t think cheating actually makes men live longer.”

Reacting to this, Joseph Chris  likened a man cheating to someone going out of his house to receive fresh air in order to feel better, relieve himself of  stress and also refresh .

Although, most men say cheating is good for the health, it helps them a lot especially when they’re going through stress or one problem or the other. However,  it is not really advisable for  any man to engage himself in it.

“Besides, cheating also has its negative side, cheating  in marriage or relationship is not a good thing ,  and for a man who wants to have a peaceful and healthy life, cheating on his partner is not an ideal and advisable thing for him to engage himself in, in order , for him to live longer. Cheating is like destroying a marriage and even the man’s life. It is better for the man to  be  transparent in whatever he does. Cheating is not a good thing to engage in at all, there is no way cheating can make a man live longer. A man going outside to cheat on his wife because he is experiencing some problems from the wife at home may even experience a bigger problem when he decides to cheat on his problematic wife.”

Speaking on the condition of  anonymity, a man said, “Sometimes cheating may sound awkward and bad to hear but at the same time this issue of  makes men live longer. To me, it  depends on the situation surrounding the reasons behind the man cheating. Cheating have its  advantages and disadvantages, sometimes it may serve as a very good way  out  of a problem for the man engaging in it and even in some aspects, it might not be called cheating. For example, a man with High Blood Pressure(HBP) whose wife is not giving him peace of mind in the house and always bringing troubles for him, maybe fortunate to find another good woman who is giving him peace of mind and always pampering him,” he maintained.

Another middle age  man who gave his name as Zekeri Abraham said “It is not really proper to say cheating makes men live longer. Although when a marriage is not in order, it can lead to a man feeling depressed, anxious, and more importantly insecured. A man who feels insecured with his partner,  may decide to engage in cheating or seeking solace in  another partner, but may experience a lot of distastrous situations afterwards because  he does  not know what he is going to experience with the other woman.  There are  lot of dangers pertaining to cheating, I have seen a situation  where  a married  man decided  to engage  in extra-marital affairs with another married woman unknowing to him that the woman had been inflicted with what  Yoruba call Magun (thunderbolt). It is sad  that the man died from the thunderbolt as a result of his infidelity. So, it will be a good thing to know that cheating does more harm than good.”

Oyindamola is a Corps member serving with The Hope.