The Loneliness Pandemic - Part 1

The Family Ties Podcast - True Crime Podcast Series

This week, Kelley Richey and Julia Avery delve into the specifics of loneliness, its effects on mental and physical health, Kodokushi, and the importance of community. This episode is Part 1 of 2 episodes that addresses the current loneliness pandemic and the health risks associated. Part 2 will be focused on identifying creative solutions.
Quarantine's Impact On Community
Before the pandemic, what was the true quality of our social interactions? It appeared as though society was adopting the homebody and binge culture. However, after being instructed to stay at home to prevent spreading the virus, suddenly everyone seemed to crave social interactions and to be outdoors. In a way, social distancing was kind of a thing before this pandemic. Hopefully, quarantining has made most of us realize how important our relationships and other people’s involvement in our lives are.
Loneliness and Its Effects on Mental Health
"Human beings are social creatures. Our connection to others enables us to survive and thrive.” According to The National Institute on Aging, “Social isolation and loneliness do not always go together. About 28 percent of older adults in the United States, or 13.8 million people, live alone, according to a report by the Administration for Community Living’s Administration on Aging of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, but many of them are not lonely or socially isolated. At the same time, some people feel lonely despite being surrounded by family and friends.”
To be more specific, social isolation is the physical objective separation from other people while loneliness is the distressed feeling of being alone and separated.
Health Risks Associated with Loneliness

Research from The Cacioppo Evolutionary Theory of Loneliness predicts that “loneliness automatically triggers a set of related behavioral and biological processes that contribute to the association between loneliness and premature death in people of all ages.”
According to Steve Cole, Ph.D.’s research, the feeling of chronic loneliness causes the individual to feel threatened and distrustful of others which activates a biological defense mechanism. Losing a sense of community changes a person’s perspective of the world.
“Loneliness is an important worldwide public health concern affecting people of all cultures and ages, with prevalence rates predicted increase to “epidemic”levels in the future (Gerst-Emerson and Jayawardhana 2015).”
Researchers found that loneliness increased mortality by 26%. The effects of loneliness are linked to smoking, obesity, elevated blood pressure, heart disease, increased hypothalamic pituitary adrenocortical activity, adverse effects on cognitive performance, the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, diminished executive functioning, and impaired sleep. Loneliness also has serious consequences for mental health and well-being, consistently emerging as a significant risk factor for depression, suicidal ideation and behavior. In addition, it has been associated with alcoholism and alcohol abuse.
Kodokushi and Japan's Battle with Loneliness
The Impact of Loneliness on Older People
How Technology Can Solve the Problem of Loneliness
Depictions of Loneliness in Movies
The Mental Health Stigma in America

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