Studies have shown that social isolation and loneliness are important risk factors for cardiovascular disease, but less has been known about their specific connection with heart failure. A new study published in JACC: Heart Failure shows that both social isolation and loneliness are associated with higher rates of heart failure but whether or not a person feels lonely is more important in determining risk than if they are actually alone. Social disconnection can be classified into two different, but connected, components. “Social isolation” refers to being objectively alone or having infrequent social connections, while “loneliness” is defined as a painful feeling caused when someone’s actual level of social interaction is less than they would like it to be.

For the study, researchers looked at data from the UK Biobank study, which followed population health outcomes over 12 years and assessed psychosocial factors like social isolation and loneliness through self-reported questionnaires. Researchers looked at health outcomes for a population of more than 400,000 middle-aged and older adults. Previous studies have been inconclusive, with inconsistent results and have used different measurements for assessing social isolation and loneliness, said Jihui Zhang, MD, PhD, a researcher at Guangzhou Medical University in Guangzhou, China, and senior author of the study.

The researchers found that both social isolation and loneliness increased the risk of hospitalization or death from heart failure by 15% to 20%. However, they also found that social isolation was only a risk factor when loneliness was not also present. In other words, if a person was both socially isolated and felt lonely, loneliness was more important. Loneliness also increased risk even if the person was not socially isolated. Loneliness and social isolation were more common in men and were also associated with adverse health behaviors and status, such as tobacco use and obesity.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2213177923000264?via%3Dihub