Loneliness triples ladies’s danger of dying early: research | USAEMALL.com

Women who feel lonely over an extended period are three times more likely to die early than those who don’t.

Research by the University of Sydney has for the first time identified a causal link between loneliness and early death among middle-aged Australian women.

The research analysed data from the Australian Longitudinal Study of Women’s Health, which looks at factors contributing to the health of more than 57,000 women.

Researchers looked at women aged between 48 and 55 and tracked their health over 15 years.

Women who did not report loneliness in the 15-year period had a five per cent risk of dying.

But for women who reported feeling lonely throughout the study period, their risk of death tripled to 15 per cent.

Loneliness has been linked to adverse health including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, depression and the development of dementia.

“Loneliness is a common experience worldwide – as many as one in three Australian adults feeling lonely during their lives,” senior report author Melody Ding said.

“But when feeling lonely becomes chronic or persists long-term, it may impact a person’s health,” she said.

There is no equivalent longitudinal data looking at the long-term health of men, but Professor Ding said midlife was a period of transition that might affect women more adversely than men.

“In middle age, women are more likely to be the primary caregivers for both young children and elderly parents, as well as going through major physical, psychological and social changes in status such as menopause, retirement and children moving away from home,” she said.

“All of which may affect how socially connected a woman feels.”

Researchers are calling for loneliness to be a risk factor screened by clinicians, in the same way people are screened for high blood pressure and cholesterol.

“The research is clear that loneliness not only correlates with existing health problems but causes them,” lead author Neta HaGani said.

“We also need to raise the public awareness of loneliness to demystify and destigmatise loneliness,” Dr HaGani said.