A large-scale study led by researchers from Florida State University College of Medicine has established a significant link between loneliness and a heightened risk of developing dementia. The study, which involved analyzing data from over 600,000 people worldwide, is the most extensive of its kind.
The meta-analysis, comprising 21 longitudinal studies, revealed that individuals who experience loneliness have a 31% higher risk of developing dementia. The findings were published in *Nature Mental Health*.
“These results align with growing evidence that connects loneliness to poor health outcomes,” said Assistant Professor Martina Luchetti, the study’s lead author. “Dementia is a spectrum, with changes in the brain starting long before any clinical symptoms appear. Understanding how loneliness fits into this equation is crucial, as it may affect cognitive function and everyday life.”
The study concluded that loneliness acts as an independent risk factor for cognitive decline, unrelated to age or gender. Furthermore, loneliness was linked to specific causes of dementia, such as Alzheimer’s disease, and cognitive impairments that often occur before an official diagnosis.
The research was partly motivated by global calls to address loneliness as a public health crisis, particularly by the World Health Organization and the U.S. Surgeon General. The COVID-19 pandemic and its social distancing measures brought the issue of loneliness into sharper focus.
“There has been increasing interest in understanding the impact of loneliness on health,” Luchetti said. “It’s important to determine why and under what circumstances loneliness raises the risk of dementia later in life.”
While the data for the study largely came from participants in wealthier Western nations, Luchetti emphasized the need for future studies to examine the effects of loneliness in other regions, especially in low-income countries where dementia cases are rising.
“We need more research from countries outside the Western Hemisphere to fully understand how loneliness impacts cognitive health across different cultural contexts,” Luchetti added.
The findings offer crucial insights that can inform future efforts to prevent or manage loneliness and support cognitive health in aging populations.
“With this evidence, we can now focus on identifying the causes of loneliness and work toward preventing or mitigating its effects to support the cognitive well-being of older adults,” Luchetti said.
The study received support from the National Institute on Aging, a branch of the National Institutes of Health. Co-authors of the study include researchers from Florida State University, Wenzhou Medical University, the University of Limerick, and the University of Montpellier.
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