It sounds bizarre, but a new study finds that seeing happy images can affect how spouses feel about their relationship.

Being married to someone you love can be a wonderful thing. But a good marriage can also be tested over time by the stresses of everyday life—like raising children, long work hours, or chronic health problems—leading to marital distress or even divorce.

What could save marriages in trouble? According to a recent study, it wouldn’t hurt to view baby-animal pictures together. In this study, 144 married couples were surveyed about how happy they were in their marriages, and then had their individual photos taken, both smiling and unsmiling. A few days later, they each completed an “automatic associations test” using their spouse’s unsmiling photo (as well as photos of others), allowing the researchers to measure unconscious positive and negative feelings toward their spouses. Toread more from JILL SUTTIE, click here.