(Medical News Today) Chronic feelings of loneliness take a toll on blood pressure over time, causing a marked increase after four years, according to a new study at the University of Chicago.
A new study shows, for the first time, a direct relation between loneliness and larger increases in blood pressure four years later-a link that is independent of age and other factors that could cause blood pressure to rise, including body-mass index, smoking, alcohol use and demographic differences such as race and income.
The researchers also looked at the possibility that depression and stress might account for the increase but found that those factors did not fully explain the increase in blood pressure among lonely people 50 years and older.
“Loneliness behaved as though it is a unique health-risk factor in its own right,” wrote researcher Louise Hawkley in an article, “Loneliness Predicts Increased Blood Pressure,” published in the current issue of the journal Psychology and Aging.
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