A study of more than 3.5 million Americans finds that married people are less likely than singles, divorced or widowed folks to suffer any type of heart or blood vessel problem. …

“It might be that if someone is married, they have a spouse who encourages them to take better care of themselves,” said Dr. Jeffrey Berger, a preventive cardiologist at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York.

The study found:

—Married people had a 5 percent lower risk of any cardiovascular disease compared to single people. Widowed people had a 3 percent greater risk of it and divorced people, a 5 percent greater risk, compared to married folks.

—Marriage seemed to do the most good for those under age 50; they had a 12 percent lower risk of heart-related disease than single people their age.

—Smoking, a major heart risk, was highest among divorced people and lowest in widowed ones. Obesity was most common in those single and divorced. Widowed people had the highest rates of high blood pressure, diabetes and inadequate exercise.