Alert1's August 2021 Newsletter (Jared's Draft)

Do Loneliness and Isolation Increase Falling in the Senior Citizen Population?

The effects of loneliness and social isolation are more far-reaching than the average person might assume. A study published in December 2020 from the University College of London has found that loneliness and social isolation are associated with higher rates of falling in the senior population.

A Pew Research Center study revealed that older adults in the U.S. are more likely to live alone than anywhere else in the world. Older adults in other parts of the world will often live with extended or immediate family in the later stages of their lives. About 12 million seniors live alone in the U.S., but only around 30% of seniors living alone say they are financially comfortable, making a fall-induced hospital visit inaccessible or, in some cases, completely unaffordable for many older Americans.

What does this mean for American seniors? A lack of care and companionship directly impacts not only seniors’ mental health, but their physical health, too. The University College of London’s study makes it clear that loneliness and social isolation are related to higher rates of falling.