Loneliness affected the risk of death more than alcoholism and obesity
More than half of older people who go to hospital for primary care are lonely. Researchers from the USA found that this factor was one of the reasons why the quality of life of patients deteriorated.
A person's health depends on many factors. It is known that lifestyle plays a big role: diet, sleep schedule, presence of physical activity, bad and healthy habits. However, according to a new study, no less important factor was the number of social connections. The Journal of the American Geriatrics Society published the results of the study.
Scientists from Indiana University in Bloomington, the Regenstrief Institute and the University of Cincinnati (all in the U.S.) analyzed data from patients over 65 years old who participated in a study evaluating the benefits, risks and harms of screening for Alzheimer's disease and related dementia. The final sample included 603 people who had seen a doctor at least once in the past 12 months, had no confirmed Alzheimer's disease, dementia, or mental illness, spoke English, and could sign consent to participate in the study.
It turned out that 53% of elderly patients who sought primary care felt lonely. These conclusions were based on a questionnaire in which respondents rated on a scale of 5 to 25 points the degree to which they felt one or another of the "set of emotions".
Quality of life was characterized by the study participants in another survey. It contained 36 questions that can be divided into several thematic categories: physical functioning, physical activity, bodily pain, general health, vitality, social functioning, and emotional and mental health. Lower quality of life scores were found to be associated with higher levels of loneliness. The authors of the study compared the strength of the impact of this factor on a person's condition with the impact of a habit of smoking 15 cigarettes daily. Alcohol and obesity did not affect quality of life as much as loneliness.
Although the study data was collected during the coronavirus pandemic, the researchers noted that the overall level of loneliness continues to increase. They urged doctors to ask patients about the number of social connections they have during a checkup in the same way they ask about diet, amount of sleep, exercise and other lifestyle details.
In addition, the researchers believe that hospital primary care staff can influence older adults' feelings of loneliness. For example, they could create a community of patients in the "Circle of Friends" format, which has already shown its effectiveness in previous studies: with its help, participants were able to find close people, reduce their loneliness and, as a result, improve their quality of life.