How moving in together makes women fatter

Living together could add inches to a woman’s waistline, but take away a few from their partners. A third of women said that they ended up eating more after moving in with their partner.

Living together could add inches to a woman’s waistline, but take away a few from their partners, a study has found.

A third of women said that they ended up eating more after moving in with their partner, often putting on weight as a result, the Daily Mail reported. By contrast, a third of men said that they tended to reduce their food intake. Many said that they had switched to foods they considered more womanly, such as yoghurt and salad. Nutritionists said that couples who prepare food together often, do not take into account their different dietary needs, dishing out equal portions of the same meals.

The survey found that men and women often wrongly fed each other according to gender stereotypes, with 90 percent of women saying that they were most likely to purchase meat when shopping for their partner.

But nutritionist Fiona Hunter said "a one-size-fits all approach can be detrimental to both partners health, partly because the sexes need different vitamins."

“Merging your diet with that of your partner and not being considerate of each other’s specific nutritional needs has implications beyond the waistline,” she said. “Men need more of the different B vitamins than women but their knowledge of these vitamins, and where to get them, is also very low,” she added.

The study, of 1,300 men and women, was carried out by Centrum Multivitamins, and showed overall nutritional awareness among UK men and women is poor. Only half of women recognised that folic acid played a crucial part in pregnancy, while few men were able to say which food contained vital vitamins.