Socialization is a key component in our lives over the course of our lifetime. However, socializing and nurturing or building relationships as we age requires critical attention. As we age, we face many challenges that aren’t common in our younger years. Many of these challenges have a direct cause & effect relationship with our health & longevity of life.
One such challenge is isolation or loneliness. Despite seniors only making up about 13% of our population, nearly 20% of them ultimately commit suicide due to causes like loneliness. Isolation and loneliness become problems as we age due to decreased mobility, moving out of state, depression and the loss of our driver’s license. Recent studies indicate that seniors that reported being lonely lived an average of 8 years longer and faced less disease.
So its been established that friendships are an essential component of healthy aging, but they can also be hurtful. When we are young we are warned by parents about the perils of “falling in with the wrong crowd”. Many studies have been done displaying the effects of befriending people that stand the potential to have a negative influence on us. This is true for the elderly too. Since we now know that our friends habits both good and bad will rub of us, seek to build relationships with others that practice health habits. It turns out that certain conditions like obesity are actually “contagious” through continued social interaction. In fact, people that spend a fair amount of time with obese individuals are more that 50% more likely to become obese themselves.
So the moral of the story is that as you age, you should choose your friends wisely and see them often. Avoid isolation to prevent loneliness and depression. If you are unable to get around easily on your own, consider moving in with family or begin researching a move into a facility. One great benefit to Independent & Assisted Living facilities is the abundant socialization opportunity they prevent.
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