oneliness adversely affects blood pressure (BP) control in older adults.

Loneliness is characterised by a motivational impulse to connect with others and also a fear of negative evaluation, rejection and disappointment.

Researchers studied 229 whites, African Americans and Latinos in Chicago, between the age of 50 and 68 years, to examine how loneliness along with depression, stress and hostility were related to heart disease and high BP. They asked a series of questions to the participants to determine if they perceived themselves as lonely. The participants were asked to rate connections with others through a series of topics such as "I have a lot in common with the people around me," "My social relationships are superficial" and "I can find companionship when I want it."

A direct relation was found between perceived loneliness and high blood pressure four years later. But the increase in blood pressure was not observable until two years during the study, but then continued to increase until four years later. Even people with modest levels of loneliness were impacted. Among all the people in the sample, the loneliest people saw their blood pressure go up by 14.4 mmHg more than the blood pressure of their most socially contented counterparts.

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 rise in blood pressure among lonely people 50 years and older.

They concluded that lonely people's apprehension about social connections might underlie the blood pressure increase.