America’s plan to tackle the loneliness epidemic

In the years before the Covid pandemic, around half of all US adults reported experiencing loneliness, according to a new report published by the office of Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy. And in what may come as a shocker, America’s loneliness problem hasn’t exactly improved since then.

But US health officials have a plan to turn Mr. Lonely → Mr. Popular. Outlined in yesterday’s report was a new national strategy to combat loneliness.

1. Strengthen the social infrastructure in US communities, a category that includes libraries, public transport, and volunteer or religious groups.
2. Encourage more “pro-connection public policies,” like the process of evaluating laws based in part on whether they benefit or hinder social connections.
3. Educate US healthcare providers and patients about the physical and mental benefits of social connection – as well as the risks of disconnection.
4. Reform current digital environments. Social media, in particular, was singled out as an example of technology that contributes to America’s ongoing loneliness epidemic.
5. Further study of the driving forces behind America’s high rate of loneliness to address current gaps in the data.
6. Encourage a nationwide culture of connection in which Americans and government institutions alike “cultivate values of kindness, respect, service, and commitment to one another.”

🤔 What’s so bad about being lonely?... On top of having no one to split a pizza with on a Tuesday at 1 am, lots of things. Peer-reviewed research has shown that feelings of loneliness are associated with higher rates of heart disease, strokes, diabetes, addiction, self-harm, and dementia. And that’s also reflected in other data: an American’s risk of premature death increases by nearly 30% if they’re lonely – or the equivalent of smoking 15 cigarettes per day.