A couple of lovers walk affectionately with umbrellas on Namsan Mountain in Seoul during the autumn rain. The beautifully maintained heart-shaped flower pots seem to support the couple’s love. It is said that in autumn, the number of people suffering from loneliness increases. Make wonderful memories this fall with your loved ones or close friends.[사진 = 김호영 기자]Emotions such as loneliness make us age faster and increase the risk of certain diseases, such as diabetes. It had more adverse effects than smoking 15 cigarettes a day, that is, a string cigarette. It has been found that when the ‘biological clock’ of emotional states is impaired, the risk of various diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, and heart disease increases.
Recently, a team of researchers from Stanford University and the Chinese University of Hong Kong in the US followed the effects of loneliness on their health in 12,000 middle-aged and elderly people living in China.
About one-third of the participants had underlying medical conditions such as lung disease, cancer, or stroke. The research team completed a model to predict their biological age by analyzing their blood samples, questionnaires, and medical data.
Then, using this model, participants were divided according to their actual age and gender, and the rate of aging was compared. As a result, it was confirmed that feelings of loneliness or sadness are the biggest predictors of biological aging. Those who felt loneliness, unhappiness, and hopelessness progressed in physical age and aging 1 year and 8 months faster than those who did not.
Even this number was higher than smoking. Smoking ranked second among the aging factors, and the physical age of smokers was 1 year and 3 months longer than non-smokers. When the body’s ‘biological clock’ is accelerated and damaged, the risk of other diseases such as Alzheimer’s, diabetes, and heart disease also increases.
In addition, factors such as gender, rural environment, and access to marital status were also found to influence biological age. According to gender, men were up to five months older than their actual age, those living in rural areas were four months longer, and those who were not single were regarding four months longer.
This research is in line with the results of a previous study conducted by the National Institute on Aging (NIH) on whether loneliness and isolation are related to aging. According to the National Institute on Aging, loneliness was worse than smoking regarding 15 cigarettes a day.
Medical experts explained, “People who feel lonely may have a more adverse effect on inflammation, anxiety, and activity than those who do not, all of which cause deterioration of health.”
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