Isolation amongst older adults results in increased health risks, study says
9th January 2017 · 0 Comments
By Michael Patrick Welch
Contributing Writer
Editor’s note: This story is the first installment in a two-part series on the adverse health effects of isolation amongst older adults. In this first installment, we discuss the health risks associated isolation amongst adults aged 65 and above as examined in a study published by American Association of Retired Persons (AARP).
Most people tend to lose momentum with age. They lose energy. For seniors, small goals once easily achieved can become burdensome. Sometimes just leaving the house to procure the basics becomes simply too much, especially for the elderly living alone with no one to help and no one to even motivate them.
Age and its attendant effects end up physically isolating 17 percent of adults in the United States over the age of 65. That’s around eight million adults total, according to the AARP Foundation.
Recent studies show that prolonged isolation from society represents the same health risks as smoking 15 cigarettes a day, and that deep loneliness can greatly increase the risk of death.
“No doubt, we consider elderly isolation to be a national health concern,” says AARP Foundation President Lisa Ryerson. “We are pulling together across sectors to collaborate and raise awareness and connect people with resources, so that all of us can learn about intervention and best practices regarding seniors who may have become dangerously isolated.”
In order to help identify and then reduce isolation among low-income elderly people, the AARP Foundation has created its new Connect2Effect website (http://connect2affect.org) in collaboration with the Gerontological Society of America, Give an Hour, the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging, and United Health Group. Connect2Effect explains elderly isolation not just so that we can spot it in our loved ones, but also to determine if we ourselves have become dangerously isolated.
“People can type their own zip code into the Connect2Effect website to find resources in their own community that will help them out of isolation, or to help someone you feel has become isolated,” says Ryerson. “The site is also interactive in that it collects stories from readers, in order to create meaning around this topic.”
Isolation can be triggered by poor physical and mental health, transportation issues, ageism and other societal barriers, or a sudden major life event such as loss of spouse or retirement from the work force. “Once people feel their contributions are no longer needed, they sometimes drop out of society,” Ryerson points out.
Estrangement from one’s neighbors can trigger social isolation; thanks to Hurricane Katrina and the Air BnB phenomenon, New Orleans might be particularly susceptible in this regard.
Geography is often a major player in a senior’s mental health. Seniors in poorly designed communities (a food desert, for instance) are more prone to isolation. Many Orleans Parish neighborhoods are designed in such a way that most residents need only open their front door to engage a running stream of social activity. A walk up the block to the corner store will get milk, a tomato, bread, and about five conversations while walking there and back. Ryerson’s visit to New Orleans for the recent Gerontological Society of America conference gave her the impression of a greater livability. “Yes the walkability, the access to resources in a community like corner stores: New Orleans seems to have communities where neighbors are looking out for neighbors – that’s helpful.”
However, she admits no studies have been done to determine the exact numbers of isolated seniors in specific areas. “People aren’t caring about this important issue the way they should, yet,” says E. A. Casey, AARP Foundation’s Program Manager, who is leading the Connect2Effect project.
“We haven’t worked on any specific projects in New Orleans but part of why we’re engaging in this work is that there isn’t a great body of local data. Before Connect2Effect there haven’t been stakeholders, or the type of infrastructure we hope to provide. We’re looking for opportunities to partner and research and advance our understanding of elderly isolation in communities like New Orleans.”
But in the end Casey states, “Elderly isolation is a problem every community deals with no matter where they are located.”
Ryerson says just the basics are helpful in combatting elderly isolation: “Reach out and touch base with each other and then care what the response is. Because creating a neighborhood is essential to helping older adults.”
To this end, Connect2Effect is initiating a program called “Home for the Holidays” that could help you understand how mom and dad are doing as they age, with tips and suggestions such as inspecting their surroundings while you are home with them (checklist available at http://www.aarp.org/relationships/caregiving-resource-center/info-08-2010/gs_assessment_checklist.html). Does their big house seem too much for them to manage? Should you perhaps help them move the bedroom downstairs? The site also has suggestions for monitoring their driving, such as looking around their community for public transportation options for shopping and doctor visits. Connect2Effect suggests that, while with them, you make sure your elderly relatives seem to have a good grasp on their medications, and help them organize bills so that everything gets paid on time.
Casey assures that the new project is more than just a website.
“We feel we’ve brought together a great coalition of stakeholders to finally help us advance the science and solutions for this problem of elderly isolation,” Casey said.
“We feel we are going to make a collective impact. We hope to not only research and raise awareness about elderly isolation but also then deliver those solutions to those who can implement them on the ground in communities – whether that’s someone who fears for a loved one and wants to become more involved in their life by becoming, say, a transportation provider. Just however they can help in some way,” Casey said.
This article originally published in the January 9, 2017 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.
