When it comes to quality of life in old age, having close connections is crucial.
In fact, researchers have found inviting your older relatives over could actually extend their lives. The study – Loneliness in Older Persons by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco – followed 1,600 adults with an average age of 71.
Despite controlling socioeconomic status and health, the lonelier participants had higher mortality rates.
Nearly 23 per cent of lonely participants died within six years of the study, as opposed to 14 per cent of those who reported adequate companionship.
According to the study 43 per cent of people over the age of 60 feel lonely.
“The need we’ve had our entire lives — people who know us, value us, who bring us joy — that never goes away,” Barbara Moscowitz, senior geriatric social worker at Massachusetts General Hospital, explained to The New York Times.
