In the era of communication and interaction of personal and even virtual relationships, the loneliness It can mean great pain in a person, affecting both their health and their quality of life.
This is highlighted, for example, in a recent report by the US surgeon general, Vivek H. Murthy, He said that the “epidemic of loneliness and isolation in his country has been an under-recognized public health crisis in recent years.” According to the expert, social disconnection shortens life almost as much as smoking 15 cigarettes a day.
In that line, the World Health Organization (WHO) Submits that loneliness and social isolationthat affect about a quarter of older peopleare key risk factors for suffering mental health conditions in later stages of life. With respect to impact of loneliness on mental health, First of all, it is necessary to differentiate between two concepts: loneliness and social isolation.
Loneliness and isolation affect the human body in many different ways, from the levels of inflammation in our bodies to the likelihood that we exercise, eat well, or go to the hospital quickly in the event of a crisis.
The work presented by Dr. Murthy indicates six health risks faced by people who feel chronically lonely or isolated.
Various studies show that people with strong social ties live longer and are less likely to die from any cause. “Social isolation significantly increases a person’s risk of dying prematurely from all causes, a risk that may rival that of smoking, obesity, and physical inactivity,” says the U.S. CDC.
- 2. Heart disease and stroke
Loneliness and social disconnection are linked to poor cardiovascular health, according to research published in the journal eClinicalMedicine, Participants aged 50 or older who had feelings of loneliness at the start of the study had a 25% higher risk of having a stroke than those who did not feel lonely at the start of the study.
Meanwhile, participants who felt very lonely at two different points in the four-year study had a 56% higher risk of stroke than those who reported low levels of loneliness.
“Especially when experienced chronically, our study suggests that loneliness may play an important role in the incidence of stroke, which is already a leading cause of long-term disability and mortality worldwide,” the study said. Lead author of the study, Yenee Soh, which was led by researchers at Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health.
According to these studies, people who suffer from loneliness are more likely to suffer from diabetes and are less able to maintain good control of the disease than those who live with someone. William A. Haseltine, president and director of the global health think tank ACCESS Health Internationalstated in an article in Psychology Today that lonely people, even, “are at higher risk for health problems like diabetes.”
Meanwhile, in 2022, a study published in Diabetologythe journal of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) revealed that the feelings of loneliness are associated with a significantly increased risk of develop type 2 diabetes.
A study on the COVID-19 vaccine showed that people who felt disconnected from their neighbors had weaker immune responses. Loneliness is even associated with dying sooner. According to a publication by Dr. Michelle Quirk, for adolescents and young adults, loneliness increases the likelihood of suffering from headaches, stomach aches, sleep disturbances, and compulsive Internet use.
The Neuroscientists have discovered that feeling alone changes the structure and function of our brain in areas associated with cognition, stress response and emotions. Brain imaging studies have also found that loneliness is related to biological markers of Alzheimer’s disease.
- 5. Cognitive impairment and dementia
A recent study of middle-aged adults found that those who felt lonely were more likely to suffer from Alzheimer’s disease, the most common type of dementia, in the future. Additionally, additional research has found that people over 65 who report feeling lonely suffer more rapid cognitive decline.
Loneliness and social isolation in older adults are a serious public health risk which affects a significant number of people in the US, putting them at risk for dementia and other serious conditions.
A new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) indicates that more than a third of adults aged 45 and older feel lonely, and almost a quarter of adults aged 65 and older are considered socially isolated.
Older adults are at higher risk for loneliness and social isolation because they are more likely to face factors such as living alone, losing family members or friends, having chronic illnesses, and hearing loss.
Depression and anxiety can also cause people to isolate themselves and feel more alone. But social connection can also reduce the risk of suicide, especially for men.
“Loneliness and social isolation They are different, but they are related. The loneliness “Social isolation is the daunting feeling of being alone or separated. Social isolation is the lack of social contacts and having few people with whom one can interact regularly,” says the National Institutes of Health (NIH).NIHfor its acronym in English).
“Social isolation has a serious effect on physical and mental health: various studies show its relationship with anxiety and depression,” the WHO indicates. While they emphasize that, especially for older adults, “social connection is particularly important to mitigate risk factors such as social isolation and loneliness.”
Likewise, in MedlinePlus, the online information service of the United States National Library of Medicine, note that loneliness “has been linked to higher rates of depression, anxiety, and suicide. It can also weaken the immune system, which protects us from diseases.”
Finally, to highlight the damage to health caused by loneliness, a recent study by the University of Glasgowpublished in the magazine BMC Medicinerevealed that people who do not receive visits from friends or family at least once a month have a 39% higher risk of premature death.
The research analyzed data from almost 460,000 people between 40 and 70 years old registered in the UK Biobank over a follow-up period of 12.6 years.