The Harms of Loneliness: From Death to Obesity

How painful loneliness is! Among the side effects of the pandemic is the disarming discovery of how being alone causes a series of harms unlike any other. And unfortunately, the numbers show a phenomenon that is rapidly increasing, with a true generational impact. American estimates show that, after the lockdown, over 40 percent of adults in the United States feel lonely. In Europe, the percentage of young people between the ages of 18 and 25 who say they feel lonely has quadrupled since the pandemic. Fifty-five percent of Italians, a population accustomed to local relationships and a dense social life, say they suffer from loneliness. And the highest percentage, 32 percent, is in the 18-34 age group.

Loneliness, and not just because of the coronavirus, has thus become a public health problem. In Europe, according to data published in the British Medical Journal , Eastern Europeans feel most lonely (7,5 percent of young adults, 9,6 percent of middle-aged adults, 21,3 percent of older adults), while Northern Europeans are least lonely (2,9 percent of young adults, 2,7 percent of middle-aged adults, 5,2 percent of older adults).

A real physical pain, much more than a feeling of discomfort. The latest research on the effects of loneliness, published by German psychiatrists and cardiologists who studied over 15 people between the ages of 35 and 74, confirms a long series of studies on the side effects of feeling lonely. Cardiovascular risks increase, stress and anxiety rise, and even blood pressure levels can be affected. Therefore, loneliness is a true pathology, one that the boom in the technological revolution has only exacerbated. We all live more connected, but more alone.

Humans are social animals, and as such, they need to interact and find their place within the community. Therefore, when they fail to do so, they enter a crisis, calling their entire world into question. Yet loneliness is still not considered as it should be: a dangerous evil. We strive to combat smoking , alcohol, and drugs, for the physical and mental ills they cause. Right. But we neglect the remedies against the dark evil of loneliness, which in reality doesn't just affect older people, but is also exploding among young people. It's the destiny of contemporary humanity: technology should bring us closer, thanks to its multiplier effects in terms of the "Internet," but in reality, all the statistics show us increasingly alone. As children, with the kids locked in their tribes, and as adults, with the elderly who feel their lives are getting longer but their human relationships are becoming rarer.

I was struck by an investigation by the British newspaper The Guardian that highlighted how loneliness in Britain has become a problem for the national health system, partly because those who suffer from it are 14 percent more likely to consider suicide than others. This is a real emergency, and not just for the elderly. The latest Local Government Report describes it as the top priority for local governments. It even goes so far as to quantify the health risks, comparing them to those related to smoking. In short, being alone is worse than smoking more than 15 cigarettes a day. That's almost a pack.

A study by scientists at the Western Norway University of Applied Sciences on a sample of 24 people found that loneliness significantly increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. The reasons for the link between loneliness and diabetes are still being studied. One hypothesis is that feeling alone creates a state of chronic stress, which in turn triggers an immune response in the body: increased production of the hormone cortisol and, as a result, a decreased ability of cells to respond to insulin. A second hypothesis is even simpler: those who are alone are more easily tempted by fatty and sugary foods . The study is also very important because diabetes causes over a million deaths a year and is the ninth leading cause of mortality worldwide.

Every solitude has its own story, a face, a tale, a parable of life. A pain. And every solitude should be faced as such, one at a time. There is the solitude of pain, of absence, of mourning , and of loss. Perhaps the easiest to overcome. And there is the solitude of poverty or impoverishment, of a difficult life that requires too much climbing up mountains to avoid hardship, fatigue, and difficulties. And there is also the solitude of those who feel they don't have the strength to cope, and resign themselves to isolation.

And if every loneliness is different, the ways to combat it must also be different. With some underlying elements, the same for all forms of loneliness. We need more real relationships, not virtual ones. Loneliness certainly isn't overcome by renting friends for $28 an hour, as some companies in Japan propose. We need encounters, relationships, conviviality, and sharing. These seem like the points on a rhetorical compass, but in reality, there are many paths that lead, or can lead, to escape loneliness. And for those who feel alone due to their social status and impoverishment, a push from below is needed that cannot come solely from the generous network of solidarity. The loneliness born of social injustice is overcome with good schools, good daycare centers, and good job opportunities. For everyone, not just the usual suspects.

There are many causes of loneliness. But a study published in PloseOne highlighted a significant difference between men and women. For men, unemployment is the leading cause of loneliness; for women, poverty is the leading factor. Men and women, however, share the same important factors that push people to live alone: ​​lack of affection, the absence of family and children, and being separated or divorced.

• Happiness hidden in little things
• Honesty: its value in a country of corruption

• The Harms of Loneliness: From Death to Obesity