Over 6 years, this study examined four combinations of loneliness and social isolation (socially isolated and lonely, being only socially isolated, being only lonely, and being neither) and their effect on memory in middle-aged and older adults.
“As we expected, people who were both socially isolated and lonely had the greatest decline in memory, which intensified over the six years,” said Ji Won Kang, lead author of the paper and a Ph.D., candidate in the School of Public Health Sciences at Waterloo. “But we were surprised to find that loneliness alone had the second-greatest impact on memory, even though so many studies report on the dangers of social isolation without considering loneliness.”
The researchers speculate that those who aren’t lonely but are socially isolated may be boosting their cognitive abilities with activities like reading, painting, puzzles, continued education, and hobbies that can be done alone which help to improve memory and stimulate the brain despite not engaging with other people in social activities.
“Older adults in the lonely category often have lower incomes than the other groups and may have structural barriers and health conditions preventing them from connecting to their communities,” she said. “A solution could be to implement transportation or home-visit programs — something to address the societal issues that lead to them being more isolated.”
These findings highlight the need for community programs, especially for the older combined groups who are at the highest risk of memory impairment. The group who is just lonely is the next priority, however, they require a different approach.
“We would need to know what is causing their loneliness,” Kang said. “They may be connected socially and have close relationships, but for example, maybe their marriage is falling apart and they would benefit from counselling.”
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https://uwaterloo.ca/news/media/loneliness-increases-risk-age-related-memory-loss
