It’s official – love is bad for your waistline.
The average Brit will pile on over half a stone in the first year of a new relationship, new research has revealed.
And if you think that’s bad, couples are likely to gain one stone and four pounds EACH after ten blissful years together.
Three quarters of the 3,000 adults polled admitted to putting on weight when they are in a happy relationship.
And a quarter of people went as far as to say they had ‘let themselves go’ after meeting their current partner.
The stats emerged from a survey conducted by Subway stores to mark their sponsorship of the weight loss show, The Biggest Loser.
A spokesman for Subway stores said: ”Being in a happy and content relationship does seem to have an effect on our waistlines.
”When we think we have met ‘the one’ it is an exciting time and monitoring what we eat and how much exercise we do is bound to fall by the wayside.
”When you’re in a relationship we tend to eat meals out and have trips to the cinema or cosy nights on the sofa, so it’s easy to see how the pounds can creep on.
”It’s important to remain focused on making the sensible choices about what you’re eating, that’s not to say you can’t have treats and enjoy dinners for two, but make sure you’re making healthy choices at other times to keep your diet balanced.”
Two thirds of people questioned said they have gradually put on weight since meeting their partner – but even in the first six months loved-up Brits put on five pounds.
Half said it was because they were so content, but a quarter said it was because they stopped working out when they met ‘the one’ because they spent all their time with their new love interest.
Whereas 36 per cent of people said they just relaxed in their own skin when they met their ideal partner.
Forty per cent of respondents reckon women are much more susceptible to put on weight in the early stages of relationships than men.
It also emerged that 59 per cent of adults thought there was a lot of pressure on singletons to look good constantly.
It’s no wonder then that 42 per cent of those polled said that meeting someone special had relieved them of some of the burden of having to look slim.
But it can work both ways with over a quarter (27 per cent) of people claiming to have lost weight when in an unhappy relationship.
And a third of people think the state of their relationship can determine how heavy they are.
Worryingly 15 per cent said they think their other half would leave them if they put on loads of weight.
And more than one in ten (13 per cent) said they would up and leave their partner if they got too heavy.
Photo courtesy of ambimb