https://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Regular visits by a therapy dog can aid the healing of people hospitalized for treatment of mental disorders, a new study says. Therapy dogs eased the loneliness and isolation of patients in a hospital for psychiatric care, helping their treatment, researchers recently reported in the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-02-therapy-dogs-ease-loneliness-people.html Mon, 09 Feb 2026 09:20:02 EST news689848738 While many people binge-watch their favorite shows, binge-watching addiction is associated with loneliness, according to a study published in PLOS One by Xiaofan Yue and Xin Cui from Huangshan University in China. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-01-people-binge-addiction-lonely.html Wed, 21 Jan 2026 14:00:02 EST news688206901 Health behavior experts have a question: If loneliness results in the same risk of dying early as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day, could the strategies that greatly reduced smoking in the United States a half century ago also potentially ease the loneliness epidemic today? https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-01-reduction-strategies-ease-loneliness-social.html Mon, 05 Jan 2026 13:24:32 EST news686841842 New research from the University of St Andrews has discovered a direct causal effect between social isolation and a faster decline in later-life cognitive function. Pathological cognitive decline is most often driven by Alzheimer's and related dementias https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-12-social-isolation-brain-life.html Tue, 16 Dec 2025 02:00:01 EST news685014841 AI chatbot systems, such as ChatGPT, Claude, and Copilot, are increasingly used as confidants of choice, but turning to AI chatbots for companionship and emotional support is a cause for concern, especially in younger people, say experts in the The BMJ. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-12-ai-chatbots-stave-loneliness-prompts.html Thu, 11 Dec 2025 18:30:13 EST news684674761 Friendship can be one of the keys to staying healthier later in life—that was one of the key findings from new research at the University of New Hampshire that took a closer look into the growing public health concern of loneliness. The study found that older adults without children are more vulnerable to loneliness, but good friends helped fill that void. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-12-friendship-important-lifeline-older-adults.html Thu, 04 Dec 2025 13:19:39 EST news684076741 Middle-aged Americans are most likely to feel the pinch of loneliness in their lives these days, a new AARP survey has found. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-12-loneliest-americans.html Thu, 04 Dec 2025 11:40:06 EST news684069599 Daily interactions with friends, even through something as simple as a text message, may reduce momentary loneliness for caregivers tending to a family member with dementia. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-10-friendships-ease-loneliness-dementia-caregivers.html Wed, 29 Oct 2025 09:23:04 EDT news680948582 Dr. Kathryn Cunningham, from the University's School of Health Sciences, has spent more than a decade studying the feeling and how it impacts upon individuals. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-10-loneliness-definition.html Thu, 23 Oct 2025 14:49:04 EDT news680449741 Interventions designed to reduce loneliness can be effective, but do not yet offer a complete solution to what is becoming a worldwide public health problem, according to research published in the journal American Psychologist. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-10-therapy-effective-social-strategies-loneliness.html Thu, 23 Oct 2025 09:00:08 EDT news680345161 Loneliness and social isolation are linked to a heightened risk of death from cancer as well as from all causes among those with the disease, finds a pooled data analysis of the available research published online in the open access journal BMJ Oncology. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-10-loneliness-social-isolation-linked-heightened.html Tue, 14 Oct 2025 18:30:03 EDT news679650301 It might sound like a contradiction, but if you're feeling lonely, you're not alone. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-10-social-health.html Thu, 09 Oct 2025 12:41:04 EDT news679232461 Young adult "night owls" (or "evening types"—those who prefer to stay up late) are significantly more at risk of developing problematic relationships with smartphones and social media, according to a new study. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-09-loneliness-anxiety-fuel-smartphone-social.html Fri, 19 Sep 2025 12:00:56 EDT news677502051 A new study led by researchers from City St George's, University of London, has revealed the strong links between loneliness and physical pain across 139 countries, highlighting the significant role of psychological distress. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-09-loneliness-physical-pain.html Tue, 16 Sep 2025 10:57:03 EDT news677239021 Childhood loneliness is associated with cognitive decline and dementia risk in adulthood, according to a study published online Sept. 12 in JAMA Network Open. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-09-childhood-loneliness-linked-cognitive-decline.html Mon, 15 Sep 2025 13:23:55 EDT news677161431 Physical sports have long been known to help with anxiety and mental health. But can augmented and virtual reality sports games improve psychological well-being and reduce loneliness? Researchers at Michigan State University's Department of Kinesiology say yes. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-09-arvr-sports-games-boost-mental.html Sun, 14 Sep 2025 07:02:44 EDT news677052144 A study has found that adolescents become highly motivated to seek rewards after just a few hours of social isolation. This may be beneficial in driving them toward social interaction, but when opportunities for connection are limited, it could lead them to pursue less healthy rewards like alcohol or drugs. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-09-teen-loneliness-triggers-reward-behavior.html Fri, 05 Sep 2025 05:00:01 EDT news676196221 In the U.K., four in 10 citizens identify as being lonely at least some of the time, and people who report being often lonely incur about £850 more in annual National Health Service costs than their non-lonely counterparts, according to a study published in the open-access journal PLOS One by Nia Morrish from the University of Exeter, U.K., and colleagues. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-09-loneliness-bad-health-wealth-uk.html Wed, 03 Sep 2025 14:00:13 EDT news676025641 A brief research report characterized loneliness severity in two national samples of people with disabilities (PWD). The study found that severe loneliness was highly prevalent in all disability types, with PWD reporting persistent feelings of loneliness at greater rates than the general population. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-08-adults-disability-experiencing-extreme-loneliness.html Tue, 05 Aug 2025 09:11:02 EDT news673603861 A comprehensive systematic review highlights a troubling intersection of mental and physical health disparities in Black women, revealing that depression and loneliness are significant—and often overlooked contributors to hypertension and poor cardiovascular outcomes. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-08-reveals-critical-links-depression-loneliness.html Mon, 04 Aug 2025 13:03:04 EDT news673531382 Without even realizing it, your world sometimes gradually gets smaller: less walking, fewer days in the office, canceling on friends. Watching plans disintegrate on the chat as friends struggle to settle on a date or place for a catch-up. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-08-lonely.html Fri, 01 Aug 2025 09:45:04 EDT news673260302 Loneliness is not a word often associated with young people. We tend to think of our youth as a time spent with family, friends and being engaged with school and work activities. Loneliness is an experience we may be more likely to associate with older people. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-07-young-australians-lonely.html Thu, 31 Jul 2025 10:03:05 EDT news673174981 Targeted and holistic health and well-being interventions are critical to addressing loneliness in retirement villages, researchers from Bolton Clarke Research Institute and Monash University have found. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-07-health-interventions-key-loneliness-village.html Mon, 28 Jul 2025 09:44:04 EDT news672914642 Widowed parents who enjoy close relationships with their adult children still struggle with loneliness, according to the first study of its kind. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-07-parenthood-lessening-loss-widowed-people.html Mon, 14 Jul 2025 18:00:01 EDT news671699434 Loneliness is common and is a strong and independent predictor of depression and poor health outcomes, according to a new study published in PLOS One by Dr. Oluwasegun Akinyemi, a Senior Research Fellow at the Howard University College of Medicine, Washington DC, U.S. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-07-loneliness-poor-mental-physical-health.html Wed, 09 Jul 2025 14:00:09 EDT news671274421 Most people experience periods of loneliness, isolation or solitude in their lives. But these are different things, and the proportion of people feeling lonely is stable over time. So why do we keep talking about an epidemic of loneliness? https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-06-loneliness-epidemic.html Thu, 26 Jun 2025 13:30:03 EDT news670161780 It has long been known that loneliness is a risk factor in the development of anxiety and depression. However, the association itself has been less well studied. This is especially true during the transition from adolescence to adulthood. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-06-young-people-prone-anxiety-depression.html Wed, 25 Jun 2025 13:25:37 EDT news670076733 Various reports have linked loneliness to premature death, with some—including the U.S. Surgeon General—suggesting that loneliness is as harmful to one's health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-06-link-loneliness-mortality-older-adults.html Mon, 16 Jun 2025 05:59:04 EDT news669272341 Young and middle-aged adults who live with chronic loneliness may be at risk for early cognitive decline, according to a new study by researchers in the Penn State Department of Human Development and Family Studies. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-05-chronic-loneliness-cognitive-health-young.html Thu, 29 May 2025 14:58:04 EDT news667749481 Over the past few decades, researchers have repeatedly identified loneliness as a significant risk factor for developing cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, most of this research has focused on people in the United States and Europe, in which social norms tend to favor the individual over collective identity. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-05-link-loneliness-heart-disease-persists.html Thu, 29 May 2025 10:58:05 EDT news667735081