{"id":18,"date":"2026-04-23T06:26:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-23T11:26:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/franklinconnects.loco.design\/?page_id=18"},"modified":"2026-04-23T06:26:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-23T11:26:15","slug":"the-loneliness-epidemic","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/franklinconnects.loco.design\/?page_id=18","title":{"rendered":"The Loneliness Epidemic"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Facts About Loneliness<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>If you\u2019re feeling lonely, you\u2019re not alone. According to the U.S. Surgeon General, approximately half of U.S. adults report experiencing loneliness, with some of the highest rates among young adults.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Loneliness can take different forms. You may lack meaningful relationships in your life or find it a challenge to make quality social connections. You may even feel somehow separate from others in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s important to note that feeling lonely is not necessarily the same as being alone. Some people are quite content spending lots of their time on their own. Conversely, others may be surrounded by people, but still feel lonely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While anyone can experience loneliness, experts say it can occur more frequently for certain people:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Younger adults, ages 16-24 \u2014 The Surgeon General reports that the rate of loneliness among young adults has increased every year between 1976 and 2019.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Female<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Single or widowed<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Renters and others without a more permanent connection to their community<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Those with a limiting mental health condition or mental distress<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Not surprisingly, social media can drive feelings of loneliness. One U.S. study found that those who use social media more than two hours a day are twice as likely to feel socially isolated compared to use it less than 30 minutes per day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Dangers of Loneliness<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Most people don\u2019t realize the serious effects loneliness can have on their overall health. According to the Campaign to End Loneliness and the U.S. Surgeon General, these include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Poor sleep<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Elevated blood pressure and stress<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Increased depression<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>29% increase in the risk of heart disease<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>32% increase in the risk of stroke<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>50% increase in the risk of dementia in older adults<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>26% increase in risk of early mortality. <strong>In fact, a lack of social connection can increase the risk for premature death as much as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>And the ramifications of loneliness go beyond health \u2014 it can also severely affect performance in school and work, limiting potential life achievements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Fortunately, these risks can be minimized. There are many opportunities in our community to reduce loneliness by building connections and lasting friendships.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Facts About Loneliness If you\u2019re feeling lonely, you\u2019re not alone. According to the U.S. Surgeon General, approximately half of U.S. adults report experiencing loneliness, with some of the highest rates among young adults. Loneliness can take different forms. You may lack meaningful relationships in your life or find it a challenge to make quality social [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-18","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/franklinconnects.loco.design\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/18","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/franklinconnects.loco.design\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/franklinconnects.loco.design\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/franklinconnects.loco.design\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/franklinconnects.loco.design\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=18"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/franklinconnects.loco.design\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/18\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19,"href":"https:\/\/franklinconnects.loco.design\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/18\/revisions\/19"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/franklinconnects.loco.design\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=18"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}