Over the years in the field of health and psychology, extensive researches have carried out of both loneliness and social isolation on the health outcomes. However, the literature deviates a lot from the terms of measures used to the two concepts hence making it difficult across the studies. Although different methodologies have been used, literature provides consistency evidence about the health risks due to both social isolation and loneliness (Choi et al., 2015). The question that follows is; are the elderly only at the risk of being socially isolated? Not just the elderly but the older adults are at the increased risk of being isolated socially and by the time they hit the 80s they live on their own (Golden et al., 2009). At that age, most of them are alone due to widowhood. To be specific, older women have higher probabilities of being widowed as compared to older men. According to research, one out of five Canadians that are aged 65 or older has felt lonely at different times. The loneliness is even higher for those above 85 years. The health and the overall life of the elderly have occupied volumes of research. The topics discussed majorly pertains the health of the elderly (Choi et al., 2015).  loneliness are least discussed.  As people age, social isolation is caused by many factors such as the death of the spouses, close friends or even family members. The negative side of social isolation is its ability to cause illness among the aged. These include the increased mortality rate, depression and blood pressure among others (Cudjoe et al., 2018). The focus of the paper is to deal with the adverse health effects of the social isolation to the elderly as well as proposing the solutions to reduce social isolation.

Introduction

The reports reveal that social isolation is more frequent among the older than any other age group. Various researches have shown that social isolation has adverse effects on the overall physical and mental health. The social isolation can be categorized into two groups which include the subjective and objective. The former is linked to the shortage of the social resources of an individual such as social support. The latter involves the lack of connection with other people due to either lack of participation in social activities or even small social network (Cudjoe et al., 2018). According to research both the types of social isolation have a positive correlation with depression and fatigue as well as sleep disturbance. Many factors cause social isolation among the aged. It may be due to the death of the spouse, health problems or retirement. An individual could be isolated socially due to lack of communication with others either due to lack of the companionship as well as lacking genuine people that care about the elderly. Other causes of social isolation could be a stigma. It is evident that a person would choose anonymity rather than expose themselves to a judgmental association (Cudjoe et al., 2018). For example, chronic illness could be stigmatizing and paralyze social interaction.

A good example is a chronic sorrow in HIV positive victims that create social isolation. Additionally, social rules might affect social interactions among people. These rules diminish the relationships producing social isolation. For instance, loosing of family friends may produce a feeling of rejection or low esteem in a person, and the cultural beliefs could amplify the feeling if such people value the culture of the community. According to studies, the subjective social isolation such as the feeling of loneliness was linked to poor quality of sleep. The claim is supported by the research on the survivors of breast cancer. The patients who felt lonelier experienced more pain and symptoms of fatigue. On the other hand, the research on objective social isolation drove the scholars to the conclusion that people who had positive social relationships had a better quality of sleep.

Health Effects of Social Isolation

Among the elderly, many health risks are caused by social isolation. First, mortality risk is high among socially isolated seniors. According to research conducted in 2012, social isolation and loneliness are linked to a higher percentage of deaths among adults aged 52 and above. The elderly that are affected by extreme loneliness is about 14 percent more likely to die prematurely (Bailey, 2018). More also, that claim is endorsed by the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing that reported that the elderly that are socially isolated tend to pass on earlier.

Additionally, socially isolated seniors tend to report poor physical and mental health. Research conducted in the UK reveals that the lack of social interaction is a strong risk factor that leads to mortality due to smoking and lack of physical exercise. Besides that, the older adults that are lonely have the increased risk of passing on early and higher chances of declining in their mobility in comparison to those who are not.  The most exciting part is that the emergency departments are flocking with older people. These aren’t suffering from any other disease rather the problems due to social interactions. Additionally, studies have also revealed that long term illnesses such as chronic lung disease, arthritis are linked with social isolation (Crooks et al., 2009). More so, according to research, it is frightening that social isolation contributes to reduced cognitive performance and increased risk of dementia.

The research by the National Center on Elder Abuse in the US reveals the link between social isolation and the increased abuse of the elderly. Loneliness also has been verified by many studies to be a significant cause of depression among the seniors and the prediction is that their quality of life worsens and they continue to be isolated socially. The depression is the main reason for the development of many home care and the nursing homes for the elderly. Social isolation has also been revealed to be the cause of risky health behaviors among the elderly. Whenever the elderly are isolated they develop a poor diet, have no value for physical activities and may even begin smoking.

Signs of Socially Isolated Seniors

In order to deal with the effects of social isolation among the aged, it is imperative to know the characteristics of a socially isolated individual. There are signs and symptoms that the socially experienced older people manifest. First, their mobility is hampered. The lack of movement characterizes a socially isolated life. For the seniors, they develop no interest in driving while others become afraid of it. The lack of transportation locks them indoors for weeks. More also, a socially isolated person tend to live alone. For the elderly, they may go through catastrophic in life that may render them lonely in the house (Wadley, 2018). For instance, divorce or death of the spouse may affect an older adult due to lack of social network. Positivity is the igniter for interest in activities. For the isolated person, they are disinterested in activities that they once enjoyed. The socially isolated seniors have no interest in socializing or engaging in the hobbies they love. Additionally, the socially isolated seniors have deteriorated health and therefore, it becomes difficult for them to participate in activities and therefore, suffering from social isolation is inevitable (Burton et al., 2006). Lastly, the socially isolated seniors have the mindset that they have everything figured out on their own. They sometimes feel that they don’t need help and have a negative attitude towards visits from friends and family.

Although one may not fully know if the efforts to reduce social isolation and loneliness could improve health, it is imperative to take some measures. The evidence that links the social isolation among seniors with poor health is a motivating factor for embracing social interventions to reduce social isolation. Although there might lack supportive evidence for that claim, there are studies that have revealed a positive impact on health due to an increase in social networks (Landeiro et al., 2017). According to research conducted for ten years revealed that people with lower levels social integration have an increased mortality risk than those with more social connections. The study also showed that the older men that had a stronger social network such as increased attendance at religious functions and having an increased number of close friends had reduced mortality rates.

The advancement in technology has availed easier methods of dealing with social isolation.  The mobile phone, social media and fast modes of communication could help individuals to keep in contact with the seniors via emails and telephone calls. The technology world offers interventions for reducing the social isolation that may be better than the lack of intervention at all (Landeiro et al., 2017). However, technology cannot be compared to physical visits.  All these methods have different levels of effectiveness. Research has revealed higher risks of depression for the seniors that have less than once physical contact with their friends, family or friends (Wilkinson et al., 2003). It continues to expound that those with touch at least twice have lower rates of depression. Therefore, physical contact has an effect of decreasing depression among seniors. More also, pets such as dogs and cats have been associated with health benefits and factors for reducing mortality.

Conclusion

Although the topic has been neglected for some time, the paper has revealed the dangers underlying the social isolation among the seniors. Social isolation might not seem to be a reality. However, taking into consideration the widowed, the divorced and the sickly then the reality of social isolation might be enhanced in our sight. Due to its adverse effects on health such as increasing the mortality rates, cardiovascular risk, dementia risk as well as blood pressure. In order to deal with the problem of social isolation, it is essential to take a look at the signs and symptoms among the seniors. These include poor health, immobility, negative attitude towards help from others and disinterest in activities. After so doing, social isolation could be reduced through ensuring physical contact with the aged as well as providing them with pets for the company (Tomaka et al., 2006). Such actions are worth risking since their cost is less compared health effects of social isolation.

References

Choi, H., Irwin, M. R., & Cho, H. J. (2015). Impact of social isolation on behavioral health in elderly: Systematic review. World journal of Psychiatry, 5(4), 432.

Landeiro, F., Barrows, P., Musson, E. N., Gray, A. M., & Leal, J. (2017). Reducing social isolation and loneliness in older people: a systematic review protocol. BMJ Open, 7(5), e013778.

Cudjoe, T. K., Roth, D. L., Szanton, S. L., Wolff, J. L., Boyd, C. M., & Thorpe, R. J. (2018). The epidemiology of social isolation: National Health and Aging Trends Study. The Journals of Gerontology: Series B.

Bailey, C. (2017). The Effects of Loneliness and Isolation on the Elderly. Retrieved from https://mylumin.org/the-effects-of-loneliness-and-isolation-to-the-elderly/

Wadley, J. (2018). Social isolation put the elderly at health risk. Retrieved from https://news.umich.edu/social-isolation-puts-elderly-at-health-risk/

Burton, A. M., Haley, W. E., & Small, B. J. (2006). Bereavement after caregiving or unexpected death: Effects on elderly spouses. Aging and Mental Health, 10(3), 319-326.

Wilkinson, R. G., & Marmot, M. (Eds.). (2003). Social determinants of health: the solid facts. World Health Organization.

Tomaka, J., Thompson, S., & Palacios, R. (2006). The relation of social isolation, loneliness, and social support to disease outcomes among the elderly. Journal of aging and health, 18(3), 359-384.

Golden, J., Conroy, R. M., Bruce, I., Denihan, A., Greene, E., Kirby, M., & Lawlor, B. A. (2009). Loneliness, social support networks, mood and wellbeing in community‐dwelling elderly. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry: A journal of the psychiatry of late life and allied sciences, 24(7), 694-700.

Crooks, V. C., Lubben, J., Petitti, D. B., Little, D., & Chiu, V. (2008). Social network, cognitive function, and dementia incidence among elderly women. American journal of public health, 98(7), 1221-1227.