孤單恐讓人少過好幾年健康日子

Feeling lonely isn't just unpleasant – it may also take years off a healthy life, according to a major new study from Tulane University in the United States. Researchers followed more than 277,000 adults aged between 40 and 69, none of whom had a serious long-term illness when the study began. The team then estimated how many years each person could expect to live, from the age of 50, without developing conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, cancer, dementia, depression or anxiety. The results were striking. Men who were both lonely and socially isolated could expect almost six fewer years free of depression and anxiety than men who had plenty of social contact. For women, the gap was nearly four years. Physical health suffered too, though to a lesser extent. Interestingly, a healthy lifestyle – eating well, exercising, sleeping properly and not smoking – helped offset some of the damage linked to social isolation. However, it made little difference to the effects of loneliness. In other words, being alone and feeling alone are not the same thing, and they may need different solutions. The researchers say loneliness should be treated as a serious public health issue. They stress, however, that the study shows a link, not proof that loneliness directly causes illness.