“And when we did the statistical analysis, what we found was that social isolation was indeed related to higher risk of dying.”

It is not clear why people with more social contacts are likely to live longer. There are some apparent reasons, like a person is more likely to survive a heart attack if someone nearby calls for help. But Andrew Steptoe suggests other reasons.

“Receiving encouragement to do things or not to do things, other people to help you with your medications or take you to the doctor, and things of that sort – which are not so much to do with the emotional side of it as more the practical side. And it could be that those things are the more important factors here.”

The study was done in Britain. Professor Steptoe says studies are taking place in other places where traditional social systems are changing.

“In many developing countries, of course, people with a rural background are moving into the larger cities, where the social connections are very, very different, and often it’s the younger people who are moving, leaving the older people in the more rural areas. And so these kinds of social connections are going to be changed dramatically.”

The research into social isolation and death rates was published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

I’m Karen Leggett.

Specialized Care for Alzheimer's Patients