Not just what you eat: The thing that may affect your aging rate

A study published in Nature Communications, involving 277,489 participants aged 40-69, found that loneliness and social isolation are linked to a loss of healthy life years. At age 50, the gap in years without physical illness reached about 2.4 years for women and 1.7 years for men; in mental health, the gap was larger. Another study from PNAS linked stressful social relationships to accelerated biological aging.

A study published in the journal Nature Communications, involving 277,489 participants aged 40-69, found that loneliness combined with social isolation is linked to a significant loss of disease-free life years. At age 50, the expected gap in years without physical illness reached about 2.4 years among women and 1.7 years among men. In mental health, the gap was larger: about 3.7 years among women and 5.8 years among men. Another study from PNAS found that social relationships perceived as burdensome or stressful were linked to signs of accelerated biological aging. The article emphasizes that these are observational studies that do not prove causality, but strengthen the understanding that social connections are an integral part of health. It recommends investing in human relationships similar to diet and physical activity, and starting with one genuine conversation a day or group activity.