People who often argue with their partners, relatives or neighbours may have an increased risk of death in middle age, a new study suggests.

Men and those without jobs appear particularly vulnerable.

According to Danish researchers, while studies indicate that strong relationships and good social support benefit health and wellbeing, less is known about the impact of negative aspects of relationships on the risk of death. They decided to investigate further.

They questioned almost 10,000 men and women aged between 36 and 52 about their relationships. The participants were already taking part in a study about working and health, including unemployment.

The researchers asked the participants whether anyone made excess demands of them and whether these lead to worries or conflict. They were also asked how often this happened and who was responsible for making these demands.

The health of the participants was monitored from 2000 to 2011. During this period, 6% of the men and 4% of the women died from a number of causes including cancer, stroke, accidents and suicide.

Some 10% of the participants said that their partner or children were a frequent, or even constant, source of excess demands and worries. Around 6% said the same of their relatives, while 2% said the same of their friends.

Furthermore, 6% had frequent arguments with their partner or children.

The researchers from the University of Copenhagen estimated that people who were subject to frequent demands or worries by their partners or children had a 50-100% increased risk of death from all causes.

Overall, constant arguing appeared to be the most harmful factor affecting health. In fact, people who often argued with people close to them, from partners to neighbours, had up to triple the risk of death from any cause compared to people who did not argue with others much.

People without jobs appeared to be particularly vulnerable. They had a much higher risk of death from any cause compared to people who were exposed to similar issues but had a job.

Furthermore, men appeared to be particularly vulnerable to the demands made of them by their female partners.

The results stood even when other factors were taken into account, such as marital status, symptoms of depression and social class.

The researchers suggested that teaching people skills in conflict management may help to reduce premature deaths caused by demanding relationships.

Details of these findings are published in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health.