#SinglesDay: Five scientific reasons why being single is good for you

Contrary to popular belief: being lonely and being alone are two very different things.

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You can be in the best committed relationship of your life and still feel lonely.

While being alone does NOT equal unhappiness.

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So on this day, the 11th of November, aka Singles' Day, it's time for all singles to take back the power and celebrate their singledom.

Gone are the days of pitying the single people! Even science has agreed that not only should you try to settle down later in life but that being single has multiple health benefits.

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Don't believe us? Then let's look at some facts:

1. Single people are better with money

According to debt.org, there is a financial advantage to being single as 21% of single people have credit card debt as opposed to 27% of married couples without children and 36% of married couples with kids.

And that's not all, because as it turns out, single people are actually less materialistic.

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2. Single people are healthier

According to a study, married couples are the unhealthiest with divorced individuals getting more exercise. People who are single though are still the healthiest and the most active.

Social psychologist Bella DePaulo has also discussed how women who have always been single have fewer sick days and fewer doctors visits than women who are currently married. Overall, single women are more healthy.

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3. Single people are better at maintaining friendships

Often when people enter a new relationship they can get lost in their own world that includes only them and their partner.

Not only do single people have a more diverse group they consider close friends, but they will also make more of an effort to keep their relationship with their siblings strong.

Another study in the journal Contexts has also found that married people are less attentive to their friends than people who have always been single. 

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4. Singledom is less stressful

Now no one is saying if you are single you don't have stress. Life is stressful whether or not you are in a relationship. But when you are in a relationship you have to constantly consider how the things you say and your behaviour affect someone else. Everything is no longer just about you and you have to be considerate of someone else. 

How does this person fit into your life, do you still have your autonomy within the relationship and is there an issue with power within the relationship?

Susan Heitler writes that these stressors can obviously be overcome but the fact remains - if you're single you don't have to worry about it.

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5. Single people are more self-sufficient 

There are lots of people who will tell you they hate being alone or they can't be alone with their own thoughts. This is obviously something they need to work on. You need to be okay on your own before you can give your all to someone else.

Learning how to appreciate alone time and being okay on your own are super important steps in becoming self-sufficient. Everyone ends up being alone at some point in their life and it will be an incredible learning experience that will only contribute to your personal growth.

Studies have also shown that more self-sufficient single people are less likely to experience negative emotions while married people associate being more self-sufficient with negative emotions implying that they resent having to fend for themselves.

And if you are still struggling to deal with the fact that you aren't currently in an entanglement of any kind, just remember:

Main image courtesy of iStock/Ponomariova_Maria