1 in 6 adults plagued by loneliness as researchers reveal lasting impact of COVID pandemic

A study of over 135,000 adults found that a surprising number of individuals feel lonely often — and that some of the loneliest people live in urban areas, shocking the researchers. Not only that — but the COVID pandemic made it worse. 

Professors at Imperial College London conducted the study. They recruited a total of 135,725 volunteers aged 16 and older to complete an online survey in England throughout a five-month period in 2023.

Almost one in six adults reported feeling lonely "often or always" — and more than one in five people frequently felt a lack of companionship or had feelings of being left out or isolated, news agency SWNS reported.

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The findings of the study, called INTERACT, surprised those involved.

When the researchers dug deeper into the data, they found that some of the loneliest people were clustered in urban environments and cities, including London, Birmingham and Manchester.

Austen El-Osta, Ph.D., public health researcher and study lead for INTERACT, said, "The key message is not simply that many people feel lonely, but that loneliness is strongly influenced by people’s surroundings, social network and their environment."

This reflected the "urban paradox" theory, the study said — where those in major cities that offer greater economic, cultural and social advantages often report lower life satisfaction, connectivity and happiness, compared to people in rural areas.

The team also found a significant lasting effect of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nearly 44% of respondents said the pandemic increased their feelings of loneliness — while 48.2% reported increased feelings of isolation.

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Senior author of the study, Dr. Azeem Majeed of the National Health Service, said, "As an NHS GP, I see how loneliness affects both the mental and physical health of my patients. It contributes to problems such as anxiety and depression, increases the risk of long-term conditions, and often leads to more frequent GP consultations."

He said that "by strengthening community connections and social capital, we can help prevent loneliness and enable people to live healthier, happier and more connected lives."

Whether people were in relationships or not didn’t seem to impact their loneliness levels.

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The research found that 45% of respondents were married or in a civil partnership — while almost 20% were single.

El-Osta said, "Loneliness is often treated as a private experience, but our findings reinforce that it is also a public health and community issue."

He added that "public health responses need to look beyond individual resilience and consider the environments, services and community assets that help people feel connected, supported and able to participate."

The team believes that this is "one of the world’s largest dedicated studies of loneliness and the largest of its kind conducted in a single country," according to Imperial College London. 

The group also cautioned that while the findings offer an important snapshot, "the study cannot be used to estimate the scale of the problem at the population level."

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In addition, the researchers noted several limitations of their study, including that it overrepresented highly educated individuals and underrepresented minority ethnic groups. 

They also highlighted the "inherent self-selection bias of this type of online survey, where those more interested or affected by an issue are more likely to take part." 

Recently, another study found that feeling lonely may take a toll on older adults' memory — though it may not speed up cognitive decline.

Researchers from Colombia, Spain and Sweden analyzed data from more than 10,000 adults ages 65 to 94 across 12 European countries. 

They found those who reported higher levels of loneliness did worse on memory tests at the start of the study, according to research published in the spring in the journal Aging & Mental Health.

The researchers also suggested that screening for loneliness be incorporated into routine cognitive assessments as one way to support healthy aging.

Deirdre Bardolf of Fox News Digital contributed reporting.