Neue Forschungsergebnisse zeigen, dass nach der Hochzeit Schönheit für den Status (die „Trophäenfrau“) zu einer Einbahnstraße wird, da sowohl Ehemänner als auch Ehefrauen ihr Aussehen anpassen, wenn sich die Einkommensmacht verschiebt. Wenn das relative Einkommen eines Ehepartners stieg, sank der BMI des anderen Ehepartners. Dies galt sowohl für Männer als auch für Frauen.

I’ve linked to the news release in the post above. In this comment, for those interested, here’s the link to the peer reviewed journal article:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1570677X25000760

From the linked article:

‘Trophy wife’ stereotype evolves into ‘trophy spouse’ once vows are made

**The “trophy wife” trope has been given a modern twist. New research shows that after the wedding, beauty-for-status becomes a two-way street, with both husbands and wives adjusting their looks as income power shifts**.

Many would be familiar with the popular culture concept of a “trophy wife,” where a (usually) older man with lots of money, social status, or both weds a (usually) younger, physically attractive woman who serves as a status symbol to enhance his value and masculinity.

The data was examined at two stages: at marriage formation (the “static” beauty-status exchange), and during marriage (the “dynamic” exchange). Syrda found that the trophy wife pattern holds true. That is, wives’ BMI was negatively associated with husbands’ relative income – wealthier men tend to marry slimmer women. Husbands’ BMI is not related to wives’ income, showing a gendered pattern of exchange at the start.

**However, during marriage, the pattern became symmetrical. When one spouse’s relative income rose, the other spouse’s BMI fell. This applied to both men and women**. It suggests that when one partner gains economic status, the other may consciously or subconsciously increase fitness or weight control to maintain balance in attractiveness and perceived value within the relationship. These effects weren’t explained by changes in absolute income; only relative income mattered.

Syrda observed that when one partner’s relative income increased, the other exercised more often. This supports the idea that changes in BMI were driven by deliberate behavioral adjustments (in effect, more physical activity) rather than just stress or chance. College-educated women showed a stronger link between their income and higher BMI, possibly because high-income professional jobs leave less time for fitness. College-educated men showed a weaker or reversed link: when their wives earned more, they sometimes gained weight, perhaps focusing more on work to reassert status rather than on physical appearance.

Could it not just be that when the other spouse has more money, they have more time to exercise and don’t have to work as hard themselves?

Yeah well, if my girlfriend does end up bringing enough money for me not to work AND buy myself a fuckton of nice clothes, you can be damn sure I’m also gonna focus on my diet and training year round.

That’s what I’d do anyways if I was single and didn’t have to work.

EDIT :

>“when their wives earned more, they sometimes gained weight“

… And this is why BMI isn’t always a good indicator, particularly if you’re going to compare trends between male and female. A guy who strength trains year round might very well be overweight or even „moderately obese“ BMI wise and have visible abs and a bicep vein.

As my wife’s income rose I became a stay home parent. She now has time to work out every morning instead of dropping a kid off at childcare. I have enough time to cook us healthy meals everyday. 

People with more money have a lot of options open up when it comes to looks…it starts with constantly having hair and nails done but I know a lot of people on weight loss injections, Botox and other small surgeries to look younger.