Studies have found that loneliness is as bad as smoking or obesity for mortality risk, and the prevalence of loneliness is predicted to increase with ageing populations, more people living alone, and with chronic health conditions. Despite the substantial literature on loneliness, there is...

Despite a substantial literature on the links between social relationships and mortality, the size of the relative risks from loneliness, social isolation, and living alone, remain controversial. Further research is therefore important given demographic changes meaning that more people are...