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How Social Isolation Affects the Brain
Absence of human contact is associated with declines in cognitive function. But as the COVID-19 pandemic brings concerns about the potential harms of isolation to the fore, researchers are still hunting for concrete evidence of a causal role as well as possible mechanisms.
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Research findings and data from the National Library of Medicine
PubMed articles
Social isolation and loneliness: relationships with cognitive function during 4 years of follow-up in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing
Loneliness and isolation are associated with poorer cognitive function among older adults. Interventions to foster social connections may be particularly beneficial for i …
Social Isolation and Memory Decline in Later-life
Results suggest that the association between social isolation and memory decline arises because social isolation is associated with increased memory decline rather than p …
Social Isolation and Cognitive Function in Later Life: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Aspects of social isolation are associated with cognitive function in later life. There is wide variation in approaches to measuring social activity and social networks a …
Are loneliness and social isolation associated with cognitive decline?
Both loneliness and social isolation are associated with decreased cognitive function over a 3-year follow-up period. The development of interventions that include the en …
Feelings of loneliness, but not social isolation, predict dementia onset: results from the Amsterdam Study of the Elderly (AMSTEL)
Feeling lonely rather than being alone is associated with an increased risk of clinical dementia in later life and can be considered a major risk factor that, independent …
Loneliness, Social Integration, and Incident Dementia Over 6 Years: Prospective Findings From the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing
Two hundred twenty participants developed dementia during follow-up. In multivariable analyses, dementia risk was positively related to greater loneliness (hazard ratio 1 …
Structural Brain Correlates of Loneliness among Older Adults
Ample evidence indicates that loneliness in old age is associated with poor bodily and mental health. However, little is known about structural cerebral correlates of lon …
The association between loneliness, social isolation and inflammation: A systematic review and meta-analysis
The review synthesised evidence examining the association between a. loneliness with inflammation and b. social isolation with inflammation in adults aged 16 or older fro …
Social engagement and loneliness are differentially associated with neuro-immune markers in older age: Time-varying associations from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing
Aspects of social engagement were associated with lower levels of inflammation whilst loneliness was inversely related to the regulation of inflammation. This suggests th …
Why may allopregnanolone help alleviate loneliness?
Impaired biosynthesis of Allopregnanolone (ALLO), a brain endogenous neurosteroid, has been associated with numerous behavioral dysfunctions, which range from anxiety- an …
Cultural engagement predicts changes in cognitive function in older adults over a 10 year period: findings from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing
There is increasing evidence that leading an active, socially engaged lifestyle might protect against cognitive decline. The arts have been proposed as potentially benefi …
Community engagement and dementia risk: time-to-event analyses from a national cohort study
It is not just social factors that are associated with reduced risk of dementia onset, but community engagement may also be protective, particularly when relating to cult …
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