Everyone should visit friends and family at least once a month to prevent loneliness and reduce the risk of dying earlier, according to new research.
Academics at the University of Glasgow have calculated that not seeing loved ones at least once a month and living alone significantly increases people’s risk of dying.
Using data from the UK Biobank study, a long-term study tracking the health and genetics of adults across the UK, the authors looked at five different kinds of social connection reported by 458,146 people with an average age of 57 and then followed them for an average of 12.6 years. They found that each form of social isolation, such as living alone, often feeling lonely, or infrequent visits from friends or family, was linked to a higher risk of dying.
People who were never visited by friends or family were 53% more likely to die from cardiovascular disease and had a 39% increased risk of death compared with those who were visited daily. Those who lived alone were 48% more likely to die from cardiovascular disease, while not being able to confide in someone or take part in activities also increased mortality risk.
Those experiencing more than one form of social isolation were at an even higher risk. People who lived alone and never saw friends or family had a 77% higher risk of dying from any cause and an even higher risk of dying from heart disease or stroke, compared with those living with someone who saw friends or family daily, the study calculated.
But even visiting just once a month could reduce this risk, the researchers concluded. The study, published in the journal BMC Medicine, calculated that people who received friend or family visits on at least a monthly basis had a significantly lower risk of dying, suggesting that there was potentially a protective effect from this social interaction.
“The risk seems to be [among] people who are very isolated, and never ever see friends and family or see them less frequently than once a month,” said the study’s co-author Jason Gill, professor of cardiometabolic health at the University of Glasgow.
“Ensuring that you visit your lonely and isolated relatives is a super helpful thing to do because it seems to be important that people have a visit at least once a month.”
The study did not examine why social isolation and loneliness increased mortality risk, but its lead author, Dr Hamish Foster, a clinical research fellow in general practice and primary care at the University of Glasgow, said: “It could be that people who are more socially isolated may have some more unhealthy behaviours like smoking or high alcohol intake, for example.” He also suggested that not having someone to help take them to the doctor or encouraging them to seek help when needed, as well as direct biological effects on the immune system, could be factors.
Responding to the findings, Dr Roman Raczka, president-elect of the British Psychological Society and chair of the Division of Clinical Psychology, said: “By highlighting the damaging effects of both low levels of objective and subjective social connections, this study shows just how important it is that we understand the different dimensions and causes of loneliness and social isolation, so that it is recognised as a major public health issue and that effective interventions are developed at a society level.”
Caroline Abrahams, charity director at Age UK, said the research underlined the importance of close friends and family members.
“It’s really easy for all of us, at any age, to ignore a health concern and put off doing something about it, but having someone close we can confide in can make a real difference.
“For some older people the offer of going along with them to an appointment or at least helping with transport may make the difference between them actively pursuing a health concern or continuing to brush it off, until they become seriously unwell.”
