Loneliness in Elderly Adults: What Families Should Know
When we ask families what changed, the answer is usually that nobody comes by anymore. Regular company and a shared activity or two are a good place to start.
Four steps that help
- Notice the quiet part of the week
- Put one shared thing in it
- Make it a regular day
- Keep it going
Loneliness in elderly adults is common and worth taking seriously: the 2023 US Surgeon General advisory on social connection ties poor social connection to a 29% higher risk of heart disease and a 32% higher risk of stroke, and regular company and shared activities are a good place to start.
Why it matters
The Surgeon General’s advisory treats social connection as part of good health, not just a pleasant extra, for people of every age. The 2023 advisory reports that loneliness raises the risk of premature death by 26%, and that social isolation raises it by 29%. It puts the scale of that in a comparison most people remember afterward: lacking social connection can carry a risk to health as large as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day. For older adults specifically, the same advisory links chronic loneliness and social isolation to roughly 50% higher risk of developing dementia.
Those findings come from large studies, not from any one person’s life. What they suggest is simple: company is worth making room for, in the same way you’d make room for a walk or a good night’s sleep.
Source: Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation, US Surgeon General advisory, 2023
Why loneliness becomes more common with age
National Institute on Aging, on what makes staying connected harder with age. Loneliness and social isolation, tips for staying connected
The National Institute on Aging points to the ordinary changes that come with getting older, not to anything a person did wrong. Hearing loss can make a busy room tiring. Vision changes can bring an end to driving in the evening. Memory changes can make a phone call harder to start. Trouble getting around shortens the list of places to go, and over the years, family and friends are lost.
Each change on its own is manageable, but they can add up. Someone can still drive, cook and enjoy a good conversation, and yet have fewer people around to share the day with. That’s why loneliness is easy to miss from the outside: a quieter phone, fewer plans, a parent who says they’re fine.
If you’re wondering whether your parent could use more help, some everyday changes worth noticing are described in signs an elderly parent needs help at home. For the a plain description of what companion care includes, see what companion care is and covers.
The kind of company that helps is specific: one shared thing, on a set day, with the same person.
The National Institute on Aging notes that people who take part in meaningful activities they enjoy with others feel a sense of purpose and report feeling more connected. The doing together is what counts.
So it helps to think about the week as a whole. Four simple steps:
Notice the quiet part of the week
Often it's a couple of afternoons, or the evenings. That's a good place to start.
Put one shared thing in it
Cooking, a drive, a card game, the crossword. Something done together.
Make it a regular day
A standing time each week is easier to keep than a plan to visit more.
Keep it going
The ordinary week, repeated, is what turns it into a habit.
If you’re looking for ideas, there’s a longer list of shared activities for seniors at home.
How companion care can help
Companion Care is one of the named services Endurance Home Care provides, and this is the part of the week it’s for. A caregiver comes on a schedule you choose, and the time is spent with your parent: talking, cooking, running errands together, getting back to the things they’ve stopped doing on their own.
We choose a caregiver with your parent in mind and introduce them before the first visit, and if it isn’t working, we find someone else. If you’re worried about your parent’s mood or health, their doctor is a good person to talk to as well.
For what a standing schedule looks like in practice, see regular companionship visits in Fairfield County.
- Serving
- Connecticut, New Jersey and New York
- Registration
- HCA.0002450
- Call our care team
- (203) 936-6847
Questions families ask
Is loneliness dangerous for elderly people?
It can affect health as well as mood. The 2023 US Surgeon General advisory on social connection reports that loneliness and social isolation increase the risk of premature death by 26% and 29% respectively, and that lacking social connection can carry a risk comparable to smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day. It links poor social connection to a 29% higher risk of heart disease and a 32% higher risk of stroke, and for older adults the advisory also links chronic loneliness to roughly 50% higher dementia risk. Those findings come from large studies rather than any one person's life, and they're a good reason to make regular company part of the week.
Why are older adults more at risk for loneliness?
The National Institute on Aging points to changes that can add up with age: hearing, vision and memory changes, disability, trouble getting around, and the loss of family and friends. Each one can make it a little harder to stay in touch with people, which is why regular, dependable company can mean so much in later life.
Can companion care help with loneliness?
Companion care brings regular, dependable company into the week: someone to talk with, cook with, run errands with and go out with. The National Institute on Aging notes that people who take part in meaningful activities with others feel a sense of purpose and report feeling more connected. We choose a caregiver with your parent in mind and introduce them before the first visit.
Let’s talk about some company for your parent
Tell us what your parent enjoys and which parts of the week feel quiet. We’ll talk through how a caregiver could help. Daily-living companion care across Connecticut, New Jersey and New York, from an agency registered with the state. The first conversation is free, and nothing starts until you say so.