Social isolation hurts -- physically hurts. Indeed, it's a growing public health crisis. That's the compelling message of a recent important article highlighting research on the health effects of feeling lonely and being socially isolated.
We at AARP Foundation applaud the recognition that research is vitally important to uncovering the pernicious effects of loneliness. We focus on social isolation, along with other issues, in our mission to help lift low-income older adults out of poverty.
Research helps raise awareness and fuels the journey toward solutions -- having a real and tangible impact on the problem.
But research needs to go beyond identifying social isolation as a public health concern. It also needs to expose the root causes of loneliness. We cannot begin to "cure" the illness of social isolation until we fully understand what is causing it.
Like the other problems struggling older adults face, social isolation is often driven by factors outside of their control. Poorly designed communities and an infrastructure that doesn't meet the transportation needs of aging adults lead to isolation. So do caregiving responsibilities and a lack of adequate support for caregivers. Changes in vision and hearing that affect older people can close them off from the wider world. Even retirement and the deaths of loved ones and friends can bring down the veil of loneliness.
We need to continue to push for and fund more research to help us understand what creates social isolation and what works to prevent and reduce it. And for low-income seniors, we need innovative and appealing new ways to include and support them in our communities. One such approach is our own Mentor Up program, which involves young people in teaching older adults how to stay connected through technology and social media - and through the simple human interaction of spending time together. It's just one way to help alleviate the crippling effects of isolation.