We all feel lonely from time to time. Although this is a difficult and unpleasant feeling, in terms of its consequences, it does not even come close to chronic loneliness – a problem that more and more people on the planet are facing.
Chronic loneliness is not “not enough friends and communication”. Many people suffering from it have many friends, many social connections and contacts, and even a large family. We are talking about an internal feeling of disconnection from other people, a feeling of incomprehensibility and global abandonment, which external circumstances cannot influence.
It has long been known that chronic loneliness is detrimental to mental health by increasing the risk of depression and anxiety. However, recent research shows that loneliness is no less harmful to physical health, reducing life expectancy and increasing the risk of serious illness.
1. Ages faster than smoking
If you are unhappy and lonely, then biologically you will age faster than heavy smokers. This is warned by researchers from the United States and China, whose article was recently published In the magazine Aging-US.
The constant negative emotions that accompany loneliness – sadness, hopelessness, depression – speed up the biological clock that counts down the days of our lives. These emotions add an extra year and eight months to our chronological age, five months more than smoking. Experts suggest that this is the result of chronic stress and inflammation that damages cells and vital organs.
2. Increases the risk of dementia by 40%
Researchers from Florida State University (USA), whose article in 2020 was published in Journal of Gerontlogy, analyzed data on more than 12 thousand people, which were monitored over a period of ten years. Participants in the study, among other information about themselves, reported how lonely they felt. Every two years, these people were tested for cognitive abilities.
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When scientists summed up the results, it turned out that chronic loneliness is associated with a 40 percent increase in the risk of dementia. The researchers suggest that depression, poor cardiovascular health, and lack of physical activity may underlie this association. All three of these factors have previously been shown to increase the risk of dementia.
In addition, chronic stress caused by loneliness contributes, as the stress hormone cortisol negatively affects the hippocampus, the region of the brain responsible for memory.
3. Doubles the Risk of Type 2 Diabetes
Such a discovery was made by scientists from the University of Applied Sciences of Western Norway, whose article published In the magazine Diabetology. They analyzed data on more than 24 thousand Norwegians who twice (in 1995-1997 and in 2017-2019) answered questions about their psychological state. Specifically, the participants were asked to rate the level of loneliness they had experienced over the past two weeks.
Over 20 years of follow-up, almost 5% of the participants developed type 2 diabetes.
Analysis of the data showed that loneliness is directly related to an increased risk of diabetes.
Those participants who experienced severe loneliness were twice as likely to develop the disease as those who did not suffer from loneliness.
4. Increases the risk of heart attack and stroke by a third
A team of scientists from the University of York (UK), whose article in 2016 was published In the magazine Heart, analyzed data from 23 studies. Studies have been conducted in developed countries around the world and are devoted to the study of the links between loneliness and the risk of cardiovascular problems.
It turned out that loneliness increases the risk of coronary heart disease by 29%, and the risk of stroke by 32%. As in the case of other diseases, scientists attribute this effect to chronic stress, which has a destructive effect on the body.
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