United States – The new study reveals that chronic loneliness begins to affect senior citizens and increases their risk for dementia.
Key Findings from New Research
Now, a study approved by the US National Institute of Mental Health followed self-reported loneliness and neurological conditions of over 600,000 participants across the globe, as reported by HealthDay.
This research also established that loneliness tripped the incidence rate of any form of dementia by 31%. Loneliness also increased the probability of development of dementia by 15%.
Study Results
Study co-author Dr Páraic Ó Súilleabháin from the University of Limerick in Ireland said, “These are very important findings and suggest that loneliness is a major risk factor to develop dementia in the future.”
Broader Implications of Loneliness
The above analysis was conducted, and I published my study on Oct. 9 in the Nature Mental Health magazine.
In 2023, a report on loneliness & isolation in the United States was released by Vivek Murthy, U.S. Surgeon General, who termed it an epidemic. The impact of loneliness on other physical and mental health is rather obvious.
“Our laboratory has found that loneliness is critical to future health in a variety of different ways, including our longevity — i.e. how long we live,” noted Ó Súilleabháin, who directs the Personality, Individual Differences and Biobehavioral Health Laboratory at the Irish university.
“Loneliness is critically important for cognitive health, in that loneliness leads to the future development of dementia, vascular dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, and more general cognitive impairment,” he explained.
He said that he could describe the new study as “a very important piece of research which will have far-reaching consequences.”
A Modifiable Risk Factor
The research was directed by Dr. Martina Luchetti of the College of Medicine at Florida State University Tallahassee.
Speaking in the University of Limerick news release, she said there’s one silver lining from the study: Loneliness is a modifiable risk factor, as reported by HealthDay.
“There are different types and sources of loneliness that can affect cognitive symptoms across the dementia continuum,” Luchetti said. “Addressing loneliness promoting a feeling of connectedness could be protective for cognitive health in later life.”