Before we draw conclusions about the implications of social isolation, we should check our expectations of how, when and why neighbouring does or does not happen.
COVID was a ‘gendered pandemic’, with women carrying very different burdens to men. A three-year New Zealand research project aimed to overcome the urge to forget, and provide lessons for the future.
Lifestyle-related dementia risks are complex, with factors like sleep, exercise, diet and social contact interacting with things like cognitive reserve, neuroplasticity and inflammation in the body.
For people who feel lonely, a trip to the supermarket could help – if only the store provided opportunities to chat at the checkout. A Dutch chain has done just that, and customers and staff love it.
Many gamers discuss deeply personal and sensitive topics with each other.
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For young men who struggle with mental health or lack connections in real life, chat and community features of online games can be a source of support.
Cognitive immobility, brought on by being separated from family, can lead to emotional exhaustion, anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Similarly to the nutrition, exercise and alcohol use guidelines promoted by many national governments, social connection guidelines have the potential to improve our health and happiness by helping us prioritize social connections in our daily lives.
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People who are lonely lead sicker and shorter lives. Just like the guidelines for food and exercise, public health guidelines for social connection can help us all live happier and healthier lives.
Loneliness around the world is growing as a result of how our lives are structured.
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Public health measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic meant that many people experienced social isolation. But the pandemic didn’t invent loneliness, and its impacts on our health are growing.
Social isolation and loneliness in aging adults have been linked to numerous physical and mental health ailments. Teaching students how to listen deeply to older people can lessen those effects.
Socially isolated people have poorer cognition, including in memory and reaction time.
Common approaches used to encourage internationally educated health-care professionals to work in smaller communities often focus primarily on attraction, but do not address the reasons why they tend to leave.
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Small communities struggle to retain needed internationally educated health-care professionals. Challenges will persist until the compounding effects of social and professional isolation are addressed.
Gun violence spiked in more than half of all U.S. states in the first 13 months of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The pandemic brought about a sharp rise in mental health concerns, deep unemployment and an unprecedented amount of social isolation – a potentially deadly combination alongside rising gun sales.
Social media can provide ways for LGBTQ youth to learn more about, and stay connected to, their identities.
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While online communities may not fully address the isolation LGBTQ youth face in-person, they can serve as an important source of social support and a springboard for civic engagement.
Director, Center for Community Child Health Royal Children's Hospital; Professor, Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne; Theme Director Population Health, Murdoch Children's Research Institute
Senior Lecturer in Architectural HIstory and Theory, UNSW & Honorary Research Fellow, Australian Centre for Architectural History, Urban and Cultural Heritage (ACAHUCH), UNSW Sydney