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.WHEN IS A MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS TOO SEVERE FOR TELEHEALTH? WARNING SIGNS FAMILIES SHOULDN'T IGNOREThe 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."The key message is not simply that many people feel lonely," said the study's lead, "but that loneliness is strongly influenced by people’s surroundings, social network and environment." (iStock)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.Whether people were in relationships or not didn’t seem to impact their loneliness levels, the study found. 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% repor...