When being alone isn’t all it’s cracked up to be

When I was a boy, controlled by my parents, what I wanted most was to be left alone. Now, at 77, I’m not so sure that’s what I want.

Loneliness can affect anyone at any age, but it’s particularly worrisome among those 60 and older because it could lead to serious health concerns, even death, and have a debilitating effect on people who are blind or going deaf. For them, it means isolation.

“Social isolation is a potent killer,” said James Lubben, a Boston College School of Social Work professor, according to Next Avenue in its Dec. 20, 2016, online publication. It quoted a study conducted for the John A. Hartford Foundation. “We need to start taking it more seriously.”

People born between 1946 and 1964, the baby boomers, represent the biggest population growth in U.S. history, with many now part of the 39.6 million people older than 65, a University of California, San Francisco, study said. They may number 88.5 million by 2050.

A University of California, San Francisco study quoted by AgingCare.com said: “Twothirds of the older adults in the UCSF study who said they were lonely were either married or living with a partner.

“This finding lends credence to the belief that it’s not about how many relationships you have — it’s about how meaningful they are.”

“Isolation and loneliness are known to be associated with higher risks of chronic disease, heart disease, depression and anxiety, even dementia and Alzheimer’s,” said Edwin L. Walker, now the deputy assistant for aging of the Administration on Aging, told the Hartford Foundation study.

Not everyone gets lonely, wanting to live by themselves.

From the Merck Manual, a publication of the drugmaker: “… Engaging in regular physical and mental activities and staying connected with others help older people who are living alone maintain their independence.”

University of Chicago psychology professor John Cacioppo told a seminar Feb. 16, 2014, at the American Association for the Advancement of Science: “Retiring to Florida to live in a warmer climate among strangers isn’t necessarily a good idea if it means you are disconnected from the people who mean the most to you,”

Family members can help prevent loneliness, too, says AgingCare.com. They can call a few times a week, they can send a card, they can drop off some favorite food and, maybe best yet, they can visit.